Jaba' | |
|---|---|
![Tomb of Shaykh Amir,[3] Jaba, in 2013](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fwikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aAmir_sheikh_north_Jaba.jpg) Tomb of Shaykh Amir,[3] Jaba, in 2013 | |
| Etymology: Hill[4] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Jaba', Haifa (click the buttons) | |
  Jaba' Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:32°39′15″N34°57′47″E / 32.65417°N 34.96306°E /32.65417; 34.96306 | |
| Palestine grid | 146/228 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Haifa |
| Date of depopulation | 24–26 July 1948[7] |
| Area | |
• Total | 7,012 dunams (7.012 km2 or 2.707 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 1,140[5][6] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault byYishuv forces |
| Current Localities | Geva Karmel[8][9] |
Jaba' (Arabic:جبع), also known asGaba, orGeba, in historical writings, was aPalestinianArab village in theHaifa Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the1948 Arab-Israeli War on July 24, 1948, as part ofOperation Shoter. It was located 18.5 km south ofHaifa, nearCarmel, and ca. 3.25 kilometers (2.02 mi) east of the Mediterranean Sea.
Emil Schürer, writing in 1891, identifies this site with a village featuring prominently in the writings of the Jewish historian,Josephus.[10] In the late 1st century BCE,Herod the Great had built a village for his veteran cavalry, and, according to E. Schürer, called this townthe city of horsemen.[11][12]
ArchaeologistBenjamin Mazar, disputing Schürer in 1957, thought that Gaba of the Horsemen (Geba), mentioned by Josephus inThe Jewish War3.3.1, ought to be identified with the ruinḪirbet el-Ḥârithîye (nowSha'ar HaAmakim), since in relation toSimonias, it better fitsJosephus' description of Gaba / Gibea (Greek:Γάβα) inVita §24 being distant from Simonias 60stadia (about 11 km.), in addition to the fact that in relation toBesara (Beit She'arin), Gaba / Gibea (Ḫirbet el-Ḥârithîye) stood at a distance of only 20stadia (about 4 km.) from Besara, also in agreement with Josephus.[13][14][15]
Jaba' was incorporated into theOttoman Empire in 1517, like all ofPalestine. During the16th and17th centuries, Jaba' belonged to theTurabay Emirate (1517-1683), which encompassed also theJezreel Valley,Haifa,Jenin,Beit She'an Valley, northernJabal Nablus,Bilad al-Ruha/Ramot Menashe, and the northern part of theSharon plain.[16][17]
In the 1596tax registers, it was part of thenahiya ("subdistrict") of Jabal Atlit, part of the largerSanjak ofLajjun. It had a population of 18 households, allMuslims. The inhabitants paid a fixed tax rate of 25% on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, summer crops, goats and beehives, in addition to occasional revenues; a total of 7,800akçe.[18][19]
In 1859, the English Consul Rogers found the population to be 150 souls, with 18 feddans of cultivation.[2]
In 1873, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine (SWP) visited and found: “There are two closed rock tombs in the ledge south of the village, and a third with a courtyard 14 feet square, sunk 2 feet ; two doors lead into chambers. One has threeloculi, one on each wall ; the other has two loculi and a recess 5 feet 6 inches, with two parallel graves under onearcosolium placed likekokim with the feet to the chamber. This is therefore a transitional example. (CompareSheikh Bureik)
There are several caves north of the village, and another tomb at the head of the valley forming the recess in which the village stands."[20]
In 1882, the SWP described it: "A small village in a recess on the hill-slope close to the plain ; the houses principally of stone. It has a good olive-yard on the west below the village, in which yard the Survey Camp was placed. The water-supply is from a well on the north-west, which has a wheel and troughs. The place seems ancient, having rock-cut tombs and caves.[2]
Jaba' had an elementary school for boys, which was founded by the Ottomans in 1885.[21]
In theBritish Mandate of Palestine period, in the1922 census of PalestineJaba had a population of 523; allMuslims,[22] increasing in the1931 census to 762; 2 Christians and the rest Muslim, in a total of 158 houses.[23]
In the1945 statistics this had increased to 1,140, all Muslims[5] with a total of 7,012 dunams of land.[6] Of this, 450 dunums were plantations or irrigable land, 4,255 were forcereals,[24] while 60 dunams were classified built-up, (urban), land.[25]
The site has several ancient ruins, including mosaics and tombs.[21]
Jaba was in the territory allotted to the Jewish state under the 1947UN Partition Plan.[26] During thewar the militia from the village fired on Jewish vehicles along the essential coast road.[27] In early June 1948, anIsrael Defense Forces (IDF) report shows that Ja'ba, together withIjzim andAyn Ghazal, were asking the IDF, "to open negotiation for surrender." Nothing resulted from the request.[28] On 14 July, before theSecond truce of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the Israeli cabinet discussed the three villages in "The Little Triangle".Ben-Gurion said that there was no need to hurry:
"these villages are in our pocket [...] We can act against them also after the [reinstitution of the] truce. This will be a police action... They are not regarded as enemy forces as their area is ours [i.e., in Israel] and they are inhabitants of the state...[and] these villages do not represent a military danger."[29]
The second truce, beginning on the 18 July, was not violated by the villagers.[30]
According toMeron Benvenisti,IDF actions over course of the Second Truce were concentrated on "cleansing" small clusters of Arab villages located in "strategic" areas.[31] Ja'ba was depopulated along with two other villages (Ijzim and'Ayn Ghazal) located on the western slopes of theCarmel mountains between July 24 and 26.[31] A week after the start of thetruce, Israel undertookOperation Shoter ("Operation Policeman"), with the aim of conquering the "Little Triangle" villages.[32] The operation was executed by a combination of brigades from theIsrael Defense Forces and the military police.[31] On July 25, street fighting was reported from Ayn Ghazal and Ja'ba. On the morning of the next day, the villages were found deserted.[32]
In September, 1948, when theUN demanded the right of the villagers to return, the Israelis said that the village had fired upon Jewish vehicles along a coast road, and therefore denied their return.[33]
Following the war the area was incorporated into theState of Israel. Themoshav ofGeva Carmel was established around one kilometer northwest of the old village site, on village land.[8]
In 1992 the village site was described: "Piles of stone rubble can be seen on the site. A shrine still standing on an elevated part of it. Pine forests grow on the land in the vicinity, which is fenced in by barbed wire. Around the village are the remains of tombs. Parts of the site is used by Israelis as grazing land."[21]
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