Al-Khayriyya الخيْريّة el-Kheiriyah, Kheiriya | |
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.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Al-Khayriyya (click the buttons) | |
  Al-Khayriyya Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:32°2′14″N34°49′41″E / 32.03722°N 34.82806°E /32.03722; 34.82806 | |
| Palestine grid | 133/160 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Jaffa |
| Date of depopulation | 25 April 1948[3] |
| Area | |
• Total | 13,672dunams (13.672 km2; 5.279 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 1,420[1][2] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault byYishuv forces |
| Current Localities | Ramat PinkasAriel Sharon ParkRamat Gan National Park |
Al-Khayriyya (Arabic:الخيْريّة), alsoIbn Ibraq, was aPalestinian Arab village located 7.5 kilometers east ofJaffa. It became depopulated in April 1948 as a result of a military assault by theAlexandroni Brigade of the pre-stateIsraeli forces during the1948 Palestine war.[4] The village lands would later be used by Israel as theHiriya landfill.[5]
At the time ofAssyrian rule inPalestine, al-Khayriyya was known asBanai Berka and duringRoman rule, it was known as byBeneberak.[6] Late Roman andByzantine ceramics have been found in the area.[7] In 938/9 a sanctuary was constructed in Al-Khayriyya, on the orders of theQadi ofDamascus.[8] During theCrusader era it was known asBombrac, mentioned in 1191 in theItinerarium Regis Ricardi of KingRichard I of England.[8][9]
In 1517, the village was incorporated into theOttoman Empire with the rest of Palestine, and in 1596 the village, calledHayriyya, appeared in the Ottomantax registers as being in thenahiya of Ramla (liwa´ of Gaza), with a population of 28Muslim households, an estimated 154 persons. The villagers paid a fixed tax rate of 25% on a number of crops, includingwheat,barley, fruits and sesame, as well as on other types of property, such as goats, beehives and vineyards; a total of 4,000akçe.[10]
Later in the Ottoman period the village was calledIbn Ibraq, preserving the ancient name.[11][12][13]
An Ottoman village list from about 1870 found thatJabrak had a population of 208, in 68 houses, though the population count included only men.[14][15]
In 1882, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine described the village, then namedIbn Ibrak, as "an ordinarymud village".[16]
At the time of theBritish Mandate for Palestine the villagers changed the name of the village toal-Khayriyya to distinguish it from the newly-established neighbouringJewish town ofBnei Brak.[17] The population was predominantlyMuslim with twentyChristians. A school for boys was established in 1920, and it had a plot of 8dunums of land attached to it for agricultural training. A school for girls was founded in 1945. By 1946, there were 183 boys and 69 girls in these schools.[17]
In the1922 census of Palestine conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities,Khairiyeh had a population of 546, 5 Christians and the restMuslims.[18] In the1931 census the population ofEl Kheiriya had increased to 914, 5 Christians and the rest Muslims, in 212 houses.[19]
The villagers worked primarily in agriculture and animal husbandry.
In the1945 statistics the population of Al-Khayriyya was 1,420: 1,400 Muslims and 20 Christians,[1] with 13,672dunams of land.[2] Of this, a total of 3,359 dunams of village land was used for citrus and bananas and 2,355 dunums forcereals, while 1,275 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards. Numerous artesian wells supplied them with irrigation water.[17][20] 26 dunams were classified as built-up (urban) areas.[21]
The Jewish settlement ofKfar Azar was established on what was traditionally village land in 1932.[17]
According to thePalestine Post, in early 1948, the village residents repeatedly attacked the nearbyEf'al settlement.[22] The newspaper also reported that on 16 February 1948, the Haganah blew up a two-story house that was used by snipers against Ef'al.[23]
The village of Al-Khayriyya was depopulated in the weeks leading up to the1948 Palestine war, during theHaganah's offensiveMivtza Hametz (Operation Hametz) 28–30 April 1948. This operation was held against a group of villages east of Jaffa, including Al-Khayriyya. According to the preparatory orders, the objective was to "opening the way [for Jewish forces] to Lydda". Though there was no explicit mention of the prospective treatment of the villagers, the order spoke of "cleansing the area" [tihur hashetah].[24] The final operational order stated: "Civilian inhabitants of places conquered would be permitted to leave after they are searched for weapons."[25]
During 28–30 April, the Haganah took Al-Khayriyya without a fight, the HIS attributed the non-resistance of the inhabitants to prior Arab defeats, and later added that "it is clear that the inhabitants [...] would willingly return to their villages and accept Jewish protection."[26]
TheAlexandroni Brigade 32nd Battalion reported that they found and buried the bodies of four adult men and three women in the village, and briefly detained a handful of men, women and children. Two of the adult male villagers were charged with having killed a Haganah man, and they were then promptly executed.[4]
Following the war, the area was incorporated into theState of Israel. In 1952 and 1969 the villages ofRamat Pinkas andRamat Ef'al, respectively, were established on village land, north of the village site.[17] Both are now part of the suburbs ofGiv'atayim.[27]
Palestinian historianWalid Khalidi described the village remains in 1992: "A handful of houses and one of the schools remain. One deserted house, surrounded by shrubs and wild vegetation, has simple architecture: a rectangular door, small side windows, and a flat roof. A two-storey house, identified as having belonged to Ahmad al-Tibi, is used as a store. It has rectangular doors and windows and a gabled roof. Cypress, fig, Christ's-thorn, and orange trees grow on the site. Part of the adjacent land is cultivated and the rest is occupied by buildings."[27]
The village lands were later designated for a landfill known asHiriya.[5]
The Haganah repulsed an Arab attack from AbuKebir last knught' chasing the gangster as far as Kheria village, where it blew up a two story house that was used by snipers against the nearby Efal settlement
