Al-Husayniyya الحسينية Al-Husayniyya | |
|---|---|
Village | |
| Etymology: Khirbat Al-Husayniyya: The ruin of el Hasanîyeh, named afterHasan ibn Ali[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Al-Husayniyya, Safad (click the buttons) | |
  Al-Husayniyya Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:33°02′23″N35°34′58″E / 33.03972°N 35.58278°E /33.03972; 35.58278 | |
| Palestine grid | 204/271 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Safad |
| Date of depopulation | 21 April 1948[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 5,324dunams (5.324 km2; 2.056 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 340 (together withTulayl)[2][3] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Influence of nearby town's fall |
| Current Localities | Chulata,Sde Eliezer[5] |
Al-Husayniyya (Arabic:الحسينية) was aPalestinian village, depopulated in 1948.
During the1948 Palestine war, the village was attacked twice by thePalmach; first on 12 March 1948 and again on 16-17 March. HistorianWalid Khalidi writes that over 45 villagers were killed in these attacks.[6] Many in the village fled seeking shelter inLebanon andSyria.[citation needed]
The village was located 11 kilometres northeast ofSafed, on a slightly elevated hill in the southwestern corner of theal-Hula Plain. It stood along the eastern side of a highway that led to Safad andTiberias.[7]
The Arab geographerYaqut al-Hamawi noted its ancient buildings and praised one of them, which he claimed had originally been a temple and perhaps was built bySolomon.[6][8]
In 1881, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine (SWP) described the place as having "a few ruined cattle-sheds".[9]
In the second half of the 19th century, after theAlgerian followers ofAbdelkader El Djezairi had been defeated by the French in Algeria, they sought refuge in another part of the Ottoman Empire. They were given lands in various locations inOttoman Syria, including al-Husayniyya, and the nearby villages ofDayshum,Ammuqa,Marus andTulayl.[10]
In the1922 census of Palestine, conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities, theHusainiyeh tribal area had a population of 127; all Muslims,[11] increasing to 274 in the1931 census; still all Muslims, in a total of 64 houses.[12]
In the1945 statistics the population the combined population ofTulayl and Al-Husayniyya was 340 Muslims,[2] with a total of 5,324 dunams of land, according to an official land and population survey.[3] All the villagers were Muslims.[13] A total of 3,388 dunums was allocated to cereals and 22 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards forTuleil and Al-Husayniyya. The villagers also kept livestock, especially water buffalo, for ploughing, dairy production, and meat.[6][14]
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On the night of 12–13 March 1948, aPalmah strike against Husseiniyya resulted in a number of houses being blown up, and several dozen Arabs, who included members of an Iraqi volunteer contingent and women and children, were killed and another 20 wounded. According to reports, Husseiniyya'smukhtar was executed after being reassured by the raiders that he would not be harmed. The Palmah's Third Battalion lost three dead.[15] According to Palmah reports cited byMorris, "the village was completely evacuated".[16] Some of the villagers who escaped the massacres may have remained or returned in subsequent days; according to Israeli military intelligence, the residents of al-Husayniyya did not leave until 21 April.[5]
The settlement ofChulata, established in 1937, is 3 km (2 mi) east of the site, near Tulayl. The settlement ofSde Eliezer is on village land, about 1 km (1 mi) west of the village site.[5]
ThePalestinian historianWalid Khalidi described the place in 1992: "Only piles of stone and sections of walls from demolished houses remain. The site itself is overgrown with thorns, grasses, and scatteredChrist’s-thorn trees, and is used as pasture. The land in the vicinity is cultivated."[5]
