Al-Mukhayzin Explained

Al-Mukhayzin
Native Name:المخيزن
Native Name Lang:ar
Etymology:Kh. el Mukheizin, the ruin of the storehouses[1]
Pushpin Map:Mandatory Palestine
Pushpin Mapsize:200
Coordinates:31.8033°N 34.8111°W
Grid Name:Palestine grid
Grid Position:132/134
Subdivision Type:Geopolitical entity
Subdivision Name:Mandatory Palestine
Subdivision Type1:Subdistrict
Subdivision Name1:Ramle
Established Title1:Date of depopulation
Established Date1:April 20, 1948[2]
Established Title2:Repopulated dates
Unit Pref:dunam
Area Total Dunam:10,942
Population As Of:1945
Population Total:310[3] [4]
Blank Name Sec1:Cause(s) of depopulation
Blank Info Sec1:Military assault by Yishuv forces
Blank3 Name Sec1:Current Localities
Blank3 Info Sec1:Chafetz Chayyim,[5] Revadim, Yad Binyamin, Beyt Chilqiyya

Al-Mukhayzin was a Palestinian Arab village in the Ramle Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on April 20, 1948, by the Givati Brigade of Operation Har'el. It was located 10 km southwest of Ramla.

History

Al-Mukhayzin was a Bedouin settlement established in the 19th century.[6]

In 1838, el-Mukhaizin was noted as a Muslim village in the Gaza district.[7]

In 1882, the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine noted at Khurbet el Mukheizin: "A large well and birkeh (=artificial pool), of masonry. Several ruined cisterns and a few scattered stones."[8]

British Mandate era

In the 1931 census of Palestine, conducted by the British Mandate authorities, El Mukheizin had 79 Muslim inhabitants, in a total of 19 houses.[9]

In 1944, Chafetz Chayyim was built on what traditionally was village land.[5]

In 1945 statistics, the village had a population of 200 Muslims and 110 Jews,[3] with a land area of 10,942 dunums.[4] Of this, Arabs used 10,936 dunums for cereals,[10] while 6 dunams were classified as non-cultivable areas.[11]

1948, aftermath

Al-Mukhayzin became depopulated after a military assault on April 20, 1948.[2]

Afterwards, Revadim, Yad Binyamin and Beyt Chilqiyya have all been built on village land.[5]

In 1992 the village site was described: "The village has been completely leveled so that only flat, cultivated fields can be seen. There is a mound of stone and debris, about 2.5 m high, at the southern edge of the site. An orange grove has been planted next the mound, also at the southern edge."[12]

Bibliography

See also

Notes and References

  1. Palmer, 1881, p. 270
  2. Morris, 2004, p. xix, village #263. Also gives cause of depopulation.
  3. Department of Statistics, 1945, p. 30
  4. Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 67
  5. Khalidi, 1992, p. 398
  6. Grossman, D. (1986). "Oscillations in the Rural Settlement of Samaria and Judaea in the Ottoman Period". in Shomron studies. Dar, S., Safrai, S., (eds). Tel Aviv: Hakibbutz Hameuchad Publishing House. p. 379
  7. Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, Appendix 2, p. 118
  8. Conder and Kitchener, 1882, SWP II, p. 425
  9. Mills, 1932, p. 21
  10. Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 116
  11. Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 166
  12. Khalidi, 1992, pp. 398-399