Nimrin

Nimrin
Nimrin
Arabic	نمرين
District	Tiberias
Coordinates	32°48′15.13″N 35°25′24.44″E / 32.8042028°N 35.4234556°E / 32.8042028; 35.4234556Coordinates: 32°48′15.13″N 35°25′24.44″E / 32.8042028°N 35.4234556°E / 32.8042028; 35.4234556
Population	320 (1945)
Area	12,019 dunums 12.0 km²
Date of depopulation	16-17 July, 1948[1]
Cause(s) of depopulation	Fear of being caught up in the fighting
Secondary cause	Military assault by Yishuv forces
Current localities	Achuzzat Naftali, IDF ammunition depot

Nimrin was a Palestinian Arab town of 320 that was captured and depopulated by Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

History

Nimrin stood on the site of Kfar Nimra when Palestine was ruled by the Roman Empire.^[2] Its inhabitants were Jews when Saint Peter and Saint James visited the town in 30 CE.^[3]

Nimrin was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in the sixteenth century CE, and by 1596 the village was had a population of 110 under the administration of the nahiya ("subdistrict") of Tiberias, part of Sanjak Safad. It paid taxes on wheat barley, wheat, olives, beehives, and goats.^[4] In the nineteenth century, Nimrin grew to become a stone-built village of 250 Muslim people. It was described as being built on the slope of a hill, surrounded by arable land.^[5] The Ottomans founded an elementary school in the village.^[2]

In 1922, Nimrin became a part of the British Mandate of Palestine and its entire population of 316 in 1931 was Muslim. The main economic sectors were farming and livestock, with grain being the most important crop, followed by vegetables. The Ottoman school was closed down.^[2]

1948 war, and aftermath

During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Nimrin fell into Israeli hands on July 17, 1948 after nearby Lubya was captured at the end of Operation Dekel. Its entire population of 320 (1945) fled for unclear reasons. According to Walid Khalidi, "the site and a major part of the lands are surrounded by a fence."^[2]

See also

• List of Arab towns and villages depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War

References

1. ^ Morris, 2004, p. xvii village #95, also causes of depopulation, with a "?"
2. ^ ^{a b c d} Khalidi, 1992, p.535
3. ^ Murray, 1997, p.165.
4. ^ Hütteroth, Wolf-Dieter and Kamal Abdulfattah (1977), Historical Geography of Palestine, Transjordan and Southern Syria in the Late 16th Century. Erlanger Geographische Arbeiten, Sonderband 5. Erlangen, Germany: Vorstand der Fränkischen Geographischen Gesellschaft. p. 189. Quoted in Khalidi, 1992, p. 535
5. ^ Conder and Kitchener, 1881, SWP, Vol. I, p.361. Quoted in Khalidi, 1992, p. 535

Bibliography

• Conder, Claude Reignier and H.H. Kitchener (1881): The Survey of Western Palestine: memoirs of the topography, orography, hydrography, and archaeology. London:Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund. vol 1
• Hadawi, Sami (1970), Village Statistics of 1945: A Classification of Land and Area ownership in Palestine, Palestine Liberation Organization Research Center, http://www.palestineremembered.com/Articles/General-2/Story3150.html 
• Khalidi, Walid (1992), All That Remains: The Palestinian Villages Occupied and Depopulated by Israel in 1948, Washington D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies, ISBN 0887282245 
• Lawrence, Murray (1997), The Amazing Spread of Christianity, St. Jude Press, ISBN 0972214925 
• Morris, Benny, (second edition 2004 third printing 2006) The Birth Of The Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-00967-7

External links

• Welcome to Nimrin
• Nimrin, from the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center
• Nimrin photos, from Dr. Moslih Kanaaneh