Bint Jbeil () is the second largest town in the Nabatiye Governorate in

Southern Lebanon Southern Lebanon () is the area of Lebanon comprising the South Governorate and the Nabatiye Governorate. The two entities were divided from the same province in the early 1990s. The Rashaya and Western Beqaa Districts, the southernmost distric ...

. The town has an estimated population of 30,000. Its exact population is unknown, because

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

has not conducted a population

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

since 1932.

History

According to

E. H. Palmer Edward Henry Palmer (7 August 184010 August 1882), known as E. H. Palmer, was an England, English oriental studies, orientalist and explorer. Biography Youth and education Palmer was born in Green Street, Cambridge the son of a private schoo ...

, the name means "The daughter of the mother of the little mountain".

Ottoman era

In 1596, it was named as a village, "Bint Jubayl" in the Ottoman ''

nahiya A nāḥiyah ( ar, , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level division w ...

'' (subdistrict) of

Tibnin Tebnine ( ar, تبنين ''Tibnīn'', also Romanized ''Tibnine'') is a Lebanese town spread across several hills (ranging in altitude from 700m to 800m (2,275 ft to 2,600 ft) above sea level) located about east of Tyre (Lebanon), i ...

under the ''

liwa' Sanjaks (liwāʾ) (plural form: alwiyāʾ) * Armenian: նահանգ (''nahang''; meaning "province") * Bulgarian: окръг ('' okrǔg''; meaning "county", "province", or "region") * el, Διοίκησις (''dioikēsis'', meaning "province") ...

'' (district) of

Safad Safed (known in Hebrew as Tzfat; Sephardic Hebrew & Modern Hebrew: צְפַת ''Tsfat'', Ashkenazi Hebrew: ''Tzfas'', Biblical Hebrew: ''Ṣǝp̄aṯ''; ar, صفد, ''Ṣafad''), is a city in the Northern District of Israel. Located at an elevat ...

, with a population of 238 households and 60 bachelors, all Muslim. The villagers paid taxes on agricultural products, such as

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley pr ...

, olive trees, fruit trees, goats and beehives, in addition to "occasional revenues", a press for olive oil or grape syrup, and a fixed sum; a total of 25,220

akçe The ''akçe'' or ''akça'' (also spelled ''akche'', ''akcheh''; ota, آقچه; ) refers to a silver coin which was the chief monetary unit of the Ottoman Empire. The word itself evolved from the word "silver or silver money", this word is deri ...

.Hütteroth and Abdulfattah, 1977, p. 179 In 1838 Edward Robinson noted it as a large Shia village, while in 1875,

Victor Guérin Victor Guérin (15 September 1821 – 21 Septembe 1890) was a French intellectual, explorer and amateur archaeologist. He published books describing the geography, archeology and history of the areas he explored, which included Greece, Asia Mino ...

found it to be a village with one thousand

Metualis Lebanese Shia Muslims ( ar, المسلمون الشيعة اللبنانيين), historically known as ''matāwila'' ( ar, متاولة, plural of ''mutawālin'' ebanese pronounced as ''metouali'' refers to Lebanese people who are adherents ...

. In 1881, the PEF's ''Survey of Western Palestine'' (SWP) described it: "A very large

Metawileh Lebanese Shia Muslims ( ar, المسلمون الشيعة اللبنانيين), historically known as ''matāwila'' ( ar, متاولة, plural of ''mutawālin'' ebanese pronounced as ''metouali'' refers to Lebanese people who are adherents ...

village, containing about 1,100 to 1,500 Metawileh. A market is held here every Thursday. The village is well built, and has a

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

. The situation is surrounded by higher hills, though the village is on high ground. The cultivation around is grapes, olives, and arable land. Water is supplied from a spring and many

cistern A cistern (Middle English ', from Latin ', from ', "box", from Greek ', "basket") is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by t ...

s and large birket."

Modern era

The town is predominately inhabited by

Shia Muslims Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most n ...

(90%), though the surrounding area also has a significant

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

(10%) minority. With the rise of Palestinian militias in Lebanon the

Lebanese army ) , founded = 1 August 1945 , current_form = 1991 , disbanded = , branches = Lebanese Ground ForcesLebanese Air Force Lebanese Navy , headquarters = Yarze, Lebanon , flying_hours = , websit ...

attempted to control their activities. In October 1969 the army surrounded 150 Palestinians near Bint Jbeil. In six days of fighting sixteen of them were killed. Bint Jbeil was occupied by

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

in 1978 during

Operation Litani The 1978 South Lebanon conflict (codenamed Operation Litani by Israel) began after Israel invaded southern Lebanon up to the Litani River in March 1978, in response to the Coastal Road massacre near Tel Aviv by Lebanon-based Palestinian mil ...

, and again from 1982 until 2000 during the

1982-2000 South Lebanon conflict __NOTOC__ Year 198 (CXCVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sergius and Gallus (or, less frequently, year 951 ''Ab u ...

, when it was severely depopulated; as much as 75% of the population was reported to have left for other parts of Lebanon. It was the scene of occasional attacks on the Israeli military forces, such as a

car bombing A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles. Car bombs can be roughly divided ...

carried out by a

Hezbollah Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...

member on 25 April 1995 which destroyed the Israeli administrative headquarters in the town. Almost three weeks later, 15 May, a bomb near Bint Jbeil killed six Israeli soldiers and wounded four.

took control of the town following the Israeli withdrawal from

South Lebanon Southern Lebanon () is the area of Lebanon comprising the South Governorate and the Nabatiye Governorate. The two entities were divided from the same province in the early 1990s. The Rashaya and Western Beqaa Districts, the southernmost distric ...

. As the largest town in the area, Bint Jbeil is sometimes known as the "Capital of the Liberated South" (among Lebanese Shi'ites). It is considered one of the centers with symbolic history for

. Under Lebanon's complicated system of

sectarian Sectarianism is a political or cultural conflict between two groups which are often related to the form of government which they live under. Prejudice, discrimination, or hatred can arise in these conflicts, depending on the political status quo ...

electoral representation, the Bint Jbeil electoral district is allocated 3 Shi'ite seats in the country's parliament. Hezbollah did well in the area in the 2005

elections in Lebanon Elections in Lebanon are allotted to occur every four years. Every citizen is allowed to vote, but the positions are constitutionally allocated by religious affiliation. In 2014, the Parliament failed to elect a president and extended its own ter ...

, winning the local seats to add to its nationwide tally of 14. During the 2006 Israeli offensive against Hizbollah the conquest of Bint Jbeil was one of the first objectives. At the start of the operation a

Maglan Maglan (Hebrew: מגלן. Also known as Unit 212 or Sayeret Maglan) is an Israeli sayeret (''reconnaissance'') unit, which specializes in operating behind enemy lines and deep in enemy territory using advanced technologies and weaponry. Though ...

reconnaissance unit was ambushed and had to be rescued by Egoz commandos. In four days of fighting seventeen Israeli soldiers were killed and most of the town destroyed (See

Battle of Bint Jbeil The Battle of Bint Jbeil was one of the main battles of the 2006 Lebanon War. Bint Jbeil (, Bint Jubayl) is a major town of some 20,000 (mainly Shia) inhabitants in Southern Lebanon. Although Brig.-Gen. Gal Hirsch announced on 25 July that the ...

). On July 15, Israeli missile killed 4 civilians, aged between 60 and 85. Reconstruction as of early 2007 had been going very slowly, leading to reports of dissatisfaction among the residents. Iranian President

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدی‌نژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956),

visited the town in 2010 to show solidarity for Hezbollah and the local victims of Israel's attacks.

Notable people

Ali Ahmad Bazzi Ali Ahmad Bazzi Abu an (Arabic: علي أحمد بزي) is a member of the Lebanese Parliament. He represents the Bint Jbeil district of South Lebanon. Year 2000–present. Ali Ahmad Bazzi is a Lebanese politician and a member of the parliament ...

(born 1958), politician and MP *

Khalid Bazzi Khalid Ahmad Bazzi (, March 15, 1969 - July 29, 2006) was a commander in Hizbullah's military wing, the ''Islamic Resistance in Lebanon''. In the 2006 Lebanon War he was commanding officer in the defence of Maroun ar-Ras and Bint Jbeil. The hea ...

(1969–2006), Hezbollah commander *

Ahmad Zreik Ahmad Adib Zreik ( ar, أحمد أديب زريق; born 27 October 1990) is a Lebanese former professional footballer who played as a winger. Club career Ahed Coming through the youth system, Zreik began his career at Ahed aged 18 in 2008. ...

(born 1990), footballer

News articles

*Greenberg, Hanan (25 July 2006)
"IDF in control of Bint Jbeil"

Ynet Ynet (stylized as ynet) is one of the major Israeli news and general-content websites, and is the online outlet for the '' Yedioth Ahronot'' newspaper. However, most of Ynet's content is original work, published exclusively on the website and wri ...

* Siegel, Robert (26 July 2006)
"Israeli Soldiers in Stiff Fight for Village"
''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

''. * Farrell, Stephen (27 July 2006)
"Battle of Bint Jbeil shocks ground troops"
''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

''. *Gilmore, Inigo & Beaumont, Peter (30 July 2006 )
"Israelis withdraw from Hizbollah border stronghold"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''. *Blanford, Nicholas (1 August 2006)
"Surveying the Damage in Bint Jbeil"
''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

''.
"The old and sick emerge to discover only rubble"
''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...

''. 1 August 2006. *Weiss, Efrat (8 July 2006)
"2 more troops killed in Bint Jbeil"
Ynet.
"Report: 'Several soldiers killed after requested to take photos faking capture of Lebanese town

International Middle East Media Center The International Middle East Media Center (or IMEMC) is an independent news organization run by Palestinians living in the Palestinian territories, working together with international journalists, who report on events in both Israel and the Pale ...

. 26 October 2006.

Gallery

File:Bint jbeil.jpg File:Bint-Jbeil Feb 2007.webm File:Bint jbail general.jpg File:28.Bint Djebail.jpg File:Bintjbeil.jpg File:Lebanon-Chaqra.jpg

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * *

External links

*Survey of Western Palestine, Map 4
IAAWikimedia commons

Localiban

Unofficial Website of Bint Jbeil-ArabicPopulation Estimate of Bint Jbeil
{{Authority control Israeli–Lebanese conflict Populated places in the Israeli security zone 1985–2000 Populated places in Bint Jbeil District Shia Muslim communities in Lebanon