Sarafand al-Amar صرفند العمار Sarafand al-Kubra | |
|---|---|
| Etymology: from a personal name[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Sarafand al-Amar (click the buttons) | |
  Sarafand al-Amar Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:31°57′34″N34°50′58″E / 31.95944°N 34.84944°E /31.95944; 34.84944 | |
| Palestine grid | 136/151 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Ramle |
| Date of depopulation | Not known[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 13,267dunams (13.267 km2; 5.122 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 1,950[2][3] |
| Current Localities | Zerifin andNir Zevi |
Sarafand al-Ammar (Arabic:صرفند العمار) was aPalestinian Arab village situated on the coastal plain ofPalestine, about 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) northwest ofRamla. It had a population of 1,950 in 1945 and a land area of 13,267dunams.[3]
In December 1918, the village's adult male population waskilled by New Zealand forces in the aftermath of theSinai and Palestine campaign, in an illegal retribution for the killing of a New Zealand soldier. It was then depopulated entirely during the1948 Arab–Israeli War.[5]
Today it is part of the Israeli area ofTzrifin.
Sarafand orSarafend (Ṣarafand / صرفند) is anArabic rendition of thePhoenicianplace-name *Ṣrpt. Al-Ammar means "the built, inhabited".[6]
Sarafand al-Amar was also known as Sarafand al-Kubra ("the larger Sarafand") to distinguish it from its nearby sister village,Sarafand al-Sughra ("the smaller Sarafand").
In 1596, Sarafand al-Kubra was under the administration of thenahiya ("subdistrict") of Ramla, part of theLiwa of Gaza in theOttomantax records. It had a population of 48 households and 17 bachelors; an estimated 358 persons, allMuslim. They paid a fixed tax-rate of 25% on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, sesame, fruit, orchards, beehives, and goats; a total of 14,000akçe. All of the revenue went to aWaqf.[7]
TheEgyptianSufi traveler Mustafa al-Dumyuti al-Luqaymi (d. 1764) reported visiting the shrine of Luqman (Luke) in Sarafand.[5] The village appeared as an unnamed village on the map ofPierre Jacotin compiled in1799.[8]
In 1838,Edward Robinson reported that there were two villages by the name of Sarafand in the area, one of which was inhabited by Muslims and the other ruined. Thus, it may be that Sarafand al-Kubra became also known as "Sarafand al-Amar" from theArabic 'amara meaning "to build up; populate".[9] Both the Sarafand villages belonged to the District ofIbn Humar.[10]
In 1863Victor Guérin found here cut stones belonging to some old buildings, and twocisterns, apparently ancient. He thought the site was probably that of an old city called Sariphaia, mentioned as having been the seat of a bishop, one of its bishops took part in the Council of Jerusalem of the year 636.[11]
An Ottoman village list of about 1870 indicated 60 houses and a population of 205 inSarfend el Ammar, though the population count included men, only.[12][13]
In 1882, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine (SWP) describedSarafand al-ajar as a village built of adobe bricks and situated on rising ground; a few olive trees were scattered around it.[14]
In December 1918, afterWorld War I but prior to theMandatory Palestine,New Zealand soldiers from theNew Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade camped near the village massacred its inhabitants as retribution for the murder of a New Zealand soldier. Between 40 and 137[15] people are believed to have been killed in the massacre, and many houses in the village were burnt to the ground.[16]
In theBritish Mandate period (1920–1948), theBritish Army established their largest military base in theMiddle East near Sarafand al-Amar and built the village up significantly. The British Army also contracted thePalestine Electric Corporation for wired electric power. While the military installations were fed by a high-tension line from 1925 onward, the village remained unconnected.[17] The British also built a prison, also under the name of Sarafand, forPalestinian nationalist activists next to the base.[5]
In the1922 census of Palestine conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities,Sarafand al-Amar had a population of 862; 861Muslims and 1 Jew,[18] increasing in the1931 census to 1183; 19 Christians and 1164 Muslims, in a total of 265 houses.[19] During this period, Sarafand al-Amar was laid out in the shape of a rectangle and its houses were made ofadobe.[5]
Sarafand al-Amar was the site of a popular shrine for Luqman al-Hakim (Luke the Wise). The village had two elementary schools, one for boys and one for girls. The boys' school was founded in 1921 and became a full elementary school in 1946–47 with an enrollment of 292 students. The girls' school was founded in 1947 and had an enrollment of 50 students. Adjacent to it was the al-Raja ("Hope") Orphanage set up for the children of Palestinians killed during the1936–39 Arab revolt in Palestine. In addition, Sarafand had a public hospital and an agricultural station.[5]
In the1945 statistics the population consisted of 1,910Muslims and 40Christians.[5][2] Agriculture was the main economic activity, with citrus being the main crop. In 1944–45, a total of 3,059 dunams were devoted to citrus and bananas and 4,012 dunams were allocated to grains; 1,655 dunams were irrigated or used for orchards,[20] while 36 dunams were classified as built-up, urban areas.[21] The orchards were irrigated fromartesian wells, while the rest of the crops were rain-fed. Artesian wells also provided drinking water.[5]
On the morning of January 2, 1948, Arab workers at the British Army camp in Sarafand al-Amar discovered twelve timed charges set to explode at noon, a time when they would have been lined up to collect their wages. The Palestinian Arab newspaperFilastin noted that none of theJewish workers in the camp had reported to work that day, implying thatZionist groups had warned them of an attack.[22]
On April 15, 1948, a group ofHaganah sappers carried out a raid on the village. According to aNew York Times report, the attackers penetrated "deep into Arab territory" and demolished a three-storey building. British authorities stated that 16 people were killed and 12 wounded in the destruction of the building. The Haganah charged that the building was used by theHoly War Army ofHasan Salama, Palestinian guerrilla commander of theJaffa district, and that 39 people were killed in the raid.[5]As the British Army evacuated Palestine in mid-May, they allowed Arab forces to take over the military base on May 14. According to the Haganah, a "small, semi-regular" Arab unit positioned there, but were driven out by two prolonged attacks from the southeast and the north; the Arab unit's defensive formation was only prepared for an attack from the Jewish town ofRishon LeZion in the west. No casualties were reported. Sarafand al-Amar was most likely captured on May 19–20 by the Second Battalion of theGivati Brigade duringOperation Barak. The residents probably fled or were evicted at the same time.[23]
Israel established theTzrifinIDF military base on the ruins of Sarafand al-Amar and the British military base in 1949, and the town ofNir Tzvi was built on village lands in 1954. According to Palestinian historianWalid Khalidi, "the site, which contains what may be the largest Israeli army camp as well as an airbase, has been designated as a military base. No more than six houses remain; most of them are deserted, but one or two are occupied by Israelis. The school is also deserted..."[23]
