Jubb Yusuf
Encyclopedia
Jubb Yusuf was a Palestinian
village depopulated in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
.
Situated in rocky terrain northwest of Lake Tiberias, the village was associated with a nearby well, Jubb Yussef (Joseph's Well)
, which was the site of a khan
or caravan stopping place for centuries.
, in 1596, Jubb Yusuf was officially a nahiya ("subdistrict") of Jira, part of Sanjak Safad, with a population of seventy-two. It paid taxes on crops such as wheat, barley, and fruit, and on goats and beehives.
In the early 18th century the scholar and Sufi Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi
mentioned the khan, the domed well which still exists, and a nearby mosque. The Swiss traveller Johann Ludwig Burckhardt
observed during his visit around 1816 that the khan was falling into ruin. The mosque was dismantled around the beginning of the 19th century and the stones used to build a sheep fence closed to the khan. The village by that time appears to have had few inhabitants, possibly because the well was no longer usable after the Galilee earthquake of 1837
, leaving only one small, seasonal source of water nearby. An 1877 survey of the Galilee carried out by the Palestine Exploration Fund
stated:
The village is mentioned in a 1945 issue of the Palestine Gazette published by the British High Commissioner in Palestine, which listed the administrative divisions and settlements of the country.
In 1946, when Kibbutz Ami'ad
was established a few hundred meters north of the khan, the village was still inhabited by Bedouin families. According to an original member of the kibbutz, the pond still provided water part of the year, "and the Bedouins, whose tents were spread across the valley of Jubb Yussef, used it to water their flocks."
However, other described the village of Jubb Yusuf as small, with closely packed houses made of mud, basalt
stones, and limestone
. There were a large number of springs in the vicinity, and that had attracted the Bedouin of the ‘Arab al-Suyyad tribe. They had settled the village, worked the land, and made up the majority of its (all Muslim
) population. Their main crops were grain, vegetables, fruits, and olives. In 1944/45 they planted 2,477 dunum
s in cereal
s.
In 1931 the number of houses in Jubb Yusuf was found to be 17.
Due to the nomadic nature of the villagers the area under their juristriction was vast; 11,325 dunum
s.
had recommended to "attemt to clear out the beduin encamped between the Jordan and Jubb Yusuf and the Sea of Galilee
". On 4 May, Allon launched the Operation Broom (Operation Matateh
). According to Khalidi
, the residents of the village were probably expelled at that date.
Jubb Yusuf is mentioned as a location by the Arab Army of Liberation (ALA) commander Fawzi al-Qawuqji
in his account of the war of 1948, and by Palmach
commander Yigal Allon
. In his report to the Haganah
General Staff on 22 April, according to Israeli historian Benny Morris
, Yigal Allon recommended “an attempt to clear out the beduins encamped between the Jordan [River], and Jubb Yusuf and the Sea of Galilee.”
The Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi
described the remains of the village in 1992: "All that remains of the village are the thorn-covered khan and domed tomb of Shaykh 'Abdallah. Fig and carob trees grow on the site. The village land is cultivated by the settlement of 'Ammi'ad
. Near the site are structures belonging to the water project that diverts water from the Jordan for use in Israel, including the water pumping station at al- Tabigha (6 km to the south), which draws water from Lake Tiberias".
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
village depopulated in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
.
Situated in rocky terrain northwest of Lake Tiberias, the village was associated with a nearby well, Jubb Yussef (Joseph's Well)
Jubb Yussef (Joseph's Well)
The ruins at Jubb Yussef in the Galilee are identified with the pit in Dothan, into which the Biblical figure Joseph was cast into by his brothers, later to be sold to a caravan of Midianites making its way toward Egypt...
, which was the site of a khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
or caravan stopping place for centuries.
History
Under the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, in 1596, Jubb Yusuf was officially a nahiya ("subdistrict") of Jira, part of Sanjak Safad, with a population of seventy-two. It paid taxes on crops such as wheat, barley, and fruit, and on goats and beehives.
In the early 18th century the scholar and Sufi Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi
Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi
Shaykh Abd al-Ghani al-Nablusi , an eminent Muslim scholar and Sufi, was born in Damascus in 1641 into a family of Islamic scholarship. His father, Isma'il Abd al-Ghani, was a jurist in the Hanafi school of Sunni Islam and a contributor to Arabic literature...
mentioned the khan, the domed well which still exists, and a nearby mosque. The Swiss traveller Johann Ludwig Burckhardt
Johann Ludwig Burckhardt
Johann Ludwig Burckhardt was a Swiss traveller and orientalist. He wrote his letters in French and signed Louis...
observed during his visit around 1816 that the khan was falling into ruin. The mosque was dismantled around the beginning of the 19th century and the stones used to build a sheep fence closed to the khan. The village by that time appears to have had few inhabitants, possibly because the well was no longer usable after the Galilee earthquake of 1837
Galilee earthquake of 1837
The Galilee earthquake of 1837, often called the Safed earthquake, was a devastating earthquake that shook the Galilee on January 1, 1837.-Impact:...
, leaving only one small, seasonal source of water nearby. An 1877 survey of the Galilee carried out by the Palestine Exploration Fund
Palestine Exploration Fund
The Palestine Exploration Fund is a British society often simply known as the PEF. It was founded in 1865 and is still functioning today. Its initial object was to carry out surveys of the topography and ethnography of Ottoman Palestine with a remit that fell somewhere between an expeditionary...
stated:
“… Our next camp was at Khan Jubb Yusuf, where we arrived on the 4th of April. The Khan is a large building falling into ruins on the main road to Damascus. There was no village near, the country being occupied by Bedawin of the Semakiyeh and Zenghariyeh tribes.
The village is mentioned in a 1945 issue of the Palestine Gazette published by the British High Commissioner in Palestine, which listed the administrative divisions and settlements of the country.
In 1946, when Kibbutz Ami'ad
Ami'ad
Ami'ad is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located near Safed, it falls under the jurisdiction of Upper Galilee Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 413....
was established a few hundred meters north of the khan, the village was still inhabited by Bedouin families. According to an original member of the kibbutz, the pond still provided water part of the year, "and the Bedouins, whose tents were spread across the valley of Jubb Yussef, used it to water their flocks."
However, other described the village of Jubb Yusuf as small, with closely packed houses made of mud, basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
stones, and limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
. There were a large number of springs in the vicinity, and that had attracted the Bedouin of the ‘Arab al-Suyyad tribe. They had settled the village, worked the land, and made up the majority of its (all Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
) population. Their main crops were grain, vegetables, fruits, and olives. In 1944/45 they planted 2,477 dunum
Dunum
Dunum is a municipality in the district of Wittmund, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
s in cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
s.
In 1931 the number of houses in Jubb Yusuf was found to be 17.
Due to the nomadic nature of the villagers the area under their juristriction was vast; 11,325 dunum
Dunum
Dunum is a municipality in the district of Wittmund, in Lower Saxony, Germany....
s.
1948 War and aftermath
Already in a report of 22 April 1948, Yigal AllonYigal Allon
Yigal Allon was an Israeli politician, a commander of the Palmach, and a general in the IDF. He served as one of the leaders of Ahdut HaAvoda party and the Israeli Labor party, and acting Prime Minister of Israel, and was a member of the Knesset and government minister from the 10th through the...
had recommended to "attemt to clear out the beduin encamped between the Jordan and Jubb Yusuf and the Sea of Galilee
Sea of Galilee
The Sea of Galilee, also Kinneret, Lake of Gennesaret, or Lake Tiberias , is the largest freshwater lake in Israel, and it is approximately in circumference, about long, and wide. The lake has a total area of , and a maximum depth of approximately 43 m...
". On 4 May, Allon launched the Operation Broom (Operation Matateh
Operation Matateh
Operation Matateh was a Haganah offensive launched ten days before the end of the British Mandate in Palestine. It was a sub-section of Operation Yiftach, with the objectivies of capturing the flatlands between Lake Tiberias and Lake Hula and clear the area of Bedouin encampments...
). According to Khalidi
Walid Khalidi
Walid Khalidi is an Oxford University-educated Palestinian historian who has written extensively on the Palestinian exodus. He is General Secretary and co-founder of the Institute for Palestine Studies, established in Beirut in December 1963 as an independent research and publishing center...
, the residents of the village were probably expelled at that date.
Jubb Yusuf is mentioned as a location by the Arab Army of Liberation (ALA) commander Fawzi al-Qawuqji
Fawzi Al-Qawuqji
Fawzi al-Qawuqji was the field commander of the Arab Liberation Army during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War in Palestine, and a rival of the principal Palestinian Arab leader, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini.-Biography:...
in his account of the war of 1948, and by Palmach
Palmach
The Palmach was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv during the period of the British Mandate of Palestine. The Palmach was established on May 15, 1941...
commander Yigal Allon
Yigal Allon
Yigal Allon was an Israeli politician, a commander of the Palmach, and a general in the IDF. He served as one of the leaders of Ahdut HaAvoda party and the Israeli Labor party, and acting Prime Minister of Israel, and was a member of the Knesset and government minister from the 10th through the...
. In his report to the Haganah
Haganah
Haganah was a Jewish paramilitary organization in what was then the British Mandate of Palestine from 1920 to 1948, which later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.- Origins :...
General Staff on 22 April, according to Israeli historian Benny Morris
Benny Morris
Benny Morris is professor of History in the Middle East Studies department of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in the city of Be'er Sheva, Israel...
, Yigal Allon recommended “an attempt to clear out the beduins encamped between the Jordan [River], and Jubb Yusuf and the Sea of Galilee.”
The Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi
Walid Khalidi
Walid Khalidi is an Oxford University-educated Palestinian historian who has written extensively on the Palestinian exodus. He is General Secretary and co-founder of the Institute for Palestine Studies, established in Beirut in December 1963 as an independent research and publishing center...
described the remains of the village in 1992: "All that remains of the village are the thorn-covered khan and domed tomb of Shaykh 'Abdallah. Fig and carob trees grow on the site. The village land is cultivated by the settlement of 'Ammi'ad
Ami'ad
Ami'ad is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located near Safed, it falls under the jurisdiction of Upper Galilee Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 413....
. Near the site are structures belonging to the water project that diverts water from the Jordan for use in Israel, including the water pumping station at al- Tabigha (6 km to the south), which draws water from Lake Tiberias".
External links
- Welcome to Jubb-Yusuf
- Jubb Yusef, at Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center
- Jubb Yusuf, Dr. Khalil Rizk