al-Khalasa الخلصة al-Khalasah, al-Khalus, Elusa | |
|---|---|
 The well at al-Khalasa | |
  al-Khalasa | |
| Coordinates:31°5′50″N34°39′9″E / 31.09722°N 34.65250°E /31.09722; 34.65250 | |
| Palestine grid | 116/056 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Beersheba |
| Date of depopulation | October 1948 |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | Not known; populated by nomads |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault byYishuv forces |
Al-Khalasa (Arabic:الخلصة,romanized: al-Khalasah;Hebrew:אל-ח'אלצה,al-Khalatsah), was aPalestinian village, located 23 kilometers southwest of the town ofBeersheba. The village stood at the site of an ancient town from theNabatean,Roman,Byzantine, and the beginning of the Early Muslim period. The ancient city, founded by the Nabateans, is known from Greek and Roman sources as "Halasa" or "Chellous", and later as "Elusa", one of the Byzantine administrative centers in theNegev Desert. Still important in the century of theMuslim conquest, it was deserted not long after.[1] The site was repopulated by Bedouin in the early twentieth century, after western archaeologists took an interest in it. In October 1948, it was captured byIsrael during the1948 Arab-Israeli War. The population of al-Khalasa is unknown, but all of the inhabitants wereMuslims, from theal-Azizma tribe.
The ancient site was founded by theNabateans, probably in the late 4th or early 3rd century BCE.[1]Roman historianPtolemy identifies Elusa during the 2nd century CE as a town inIdumea west of theJordan River.[1] After the Roman annexation of Nabataea in 106, Elusa became the main city of the centralNegev, the prominent 4th-centuryrhetorician Zenobius being born there.[1]
Elusa, as ofPalaestina Tertia, was among the first Negev towns with a largeChristian population, which coexisted withpagans during the 4th and early 5th century.[1]
TheNessana papyri (6th and 7th century) are attesting that after the Muslim conquest of Palestine, the city retained remained an administrative center during the beginning of theEarly Muslim period at least until the late 7th century.[1] The papyri are showing that after the Arab conquest, the city's name took theArabic form of al-Khalus,[1] which was closer to the original, pre-HellenisticSemitic form.[citation needed] Eventually the city went into decline and was abandoned for centuries.[1]
Thirteenth-centurySyrian geographerAl-Dimashqi identifies it as one of the "Israelite" towns of the Negev Desert.[2] Fourteenth centuryEgyptian geographer,al-Maqrizi said it was one of the larger "cities" in southern desert of Palestine.[when?][dubious –discuss] Khalidi describes how, as the Negev trade routes declined, al-Khalasa eventually diminished[dubious –discuss].[3]
Edward Robinson visited the ruins in 1838 and, with the help of the preserved Arabic name, correctly identified the site as the long-lost Elusa.[1][clarification needed] The constant interest of British, French and other Western archaeologists in the ancient site, encouraged al-Khalasa's resettlement by the al-AzizmaBedouin tribe of the Negev,[3] who started building next to the wells and among the ancient ruins after the end of theFirst World War.[1] They built the village with a triangular plan in between twowadis, with houses constructed of mud and stone. An elementary school was established in the village in 1941, and there were several shops. Most of the inhabitants earned their living through animal husbandry and commerce, and used a well for drinking water.[3]
During the1948 Arab-Israeli War, the village was defended by theEgyptian Army and local militia volunteers. TheArab forces were defeated by Israel'sNegev Brigade duringOperation Yoav in the last days of October 1948.[4]
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