Khirbat Al-'Umur

Khirbat al-'Umur was a Palestinian Arab village in the Jerusalem Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the 1948 Palestine war by the Har'el Brigade during Operation Ha-Har. It was 12 km west of Jerusalem on the Wadi al-Ghadir.

History

An Ottoman village list from about 1870 showed that ''chirbet el-'amur'' had a population of 69, with a total of 13 houses, though the population count included men, only. It also noted that it was located in the District of Beni Malik, south of Abu Ghosh, and east of Saris.

In 1883, the PEF's ''Survey of Western Palestine'' (SWP) described ''El Ammur'' as "A small hamlet on the slope above a deep valley. There is a fine perennial spring below on the south ('Ain Mahtush). There are olives beneath the village."

British Mandate era

In the 1922 census of Palestine conducted by the British Mandate authorities, ''Kherbet al-'Amur'' had a population of 137 Muslims,Barron, 1923, Table VII, Sub-district of Jerusalem, p
14
/ref> increasing in the 1931 census to 187 Muslims, in 45 houses.Mills, 1932, p
44
/ref>

In the 1945 statistics, the village had a population of 270 Muslims, while the total land area was 4,163 dunams, according to an official land and population survey. Of this, 497 dunams were used for plantations and irrigable land, 1,279 for cereals, while 10 dunams were classified as built-up areas.Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. ''Village Statistics, April, 1945.'' Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p
153
/ref>

File:Kasla 1943.jpg, Khirbat al-'Umur 1943 1:20,000 (left)
File:Yalu 1945.jpg, Khirbat al-'Umur 1945 1:250,000

1948, aftermath

Khirbat al-'Umur became depopulated on October 21, 1948, after military assault by Yishuv forces.

In 1950, Giv'at Ye'arim was founded on village land.

In 1992, the village site was described: "Stone rubble and window and door frames, partly hidden by wild grass, are scattered across the village site. Many stone terraces are visible. Cactuses grow on the east and north sides of the village site, and almond, olive, fig, and cypress trees grow on the village site itself. The village cemetery, to the south, is covered with dirt and grass but many graves are visible; tombstones stand at the head and foot of each one. The spring of 'Ayn al-'Umur and the stone structure around it can still be seen."

File:KhirbatAlUmurFeb182023 01.jpg, The spur on which the village was located, and on the other side of the riverbed, on the hill, Giv'at Ye'arim that was built on the village land
File:KhirbatAlUmurFeb182023 05.jpg, The remains of the village on the spur
File:EinAlUmurFeb182023 03.jpg, Ein al-'Umur near the village. In the historical maps it is called Ein Mahtush.

References

Bibliography

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External links

Welcome To al-'Umur, Khirbat

Khirbat al-'Umur
Zochrot
Tour of Khirbat al-’Umur
09/10/2015, Zochrot
*Survey of Western Palestine, Map 17
IAAWikimedia commons


from the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center
{{Palestinian Arab villages depopulated during the 1948 Palestine War

Arab villages depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War
District of Jerusalem