Deir al-Balah
Deir al-Balah | |
---|---|
Municipality type A (City) | |
Arabic transcription(s) | |
• Arabic | دير البلح |
• Latin | Deir el-Balah (official[citation needed]) Dayr al-Balah (unofficial) |
City (from 1994) | |
• Head of Municipality | Imad al-Jarou[1] |
Area | |
• Total | 14,735 dunams (14.7 km2 or 5.7 sq mi) |
Population (2017)[2] | |
• Total | 75,132 |
• Density | 5,100/km2 (13,000/sq mi) |
Name meaning | "Monastery of the Date Palm" |
Deir al-Balah or Deir al Balah (
Deir al-Balah dates back to the
Under
Etymology
Deir al-Balah etc.
"Deir al-Balah", which in
Darom etc.
Up until the later Ottoman era, Deir al-Balah was referred to in Arabic as "Darum" or "Darun" which derived from the settlement's Crusader-era Latin name "Darom" or "Doron." That name was explained by the Crusader chronicler
Geography
Deir al-Balah is situated in the central Gaza Strip, along the coastline of the eastern Mediterranean Sea.[15] Its city center is about 1,700 meters (5,600 ft) east of the coast while the ancient site of Darum was uncovered 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) to the south of central Deir al-Balah.[3] While the city's municipal borders stretch eastward toward the border with Israel, its urban area does not extend beyond the main Salah al-Din Highway to the east.[16]
Nearby localities include
The city has absorbed the coastal
History
Bronze Age Canaanite, and Iron Age Philistine city
Deir al-Balah's history dates back to the mid-14th century BC, during the
Deir al-Balah remained in Egyptian hands until around 1150 BC when the Philistines conquered the southern coastal area of Canaan.[18] The Philistine settlement is thought to have been situated southwest of the excavation site; its remains are hidden under large sand dunes. Five pits dug into the Late Bronze Age layers and containing Philistine pottery are among the few findings from that period.[21]
The archaeological excavations at the Egyptian-period site were executed between 1972 and 1982, during Israel's occupation, and headed by Trude Dothan. After the conclusion of the excavations the area was used for farming purposes and is now covered by vegetable gardens and fruit orchards while the main findings can be seen in Israeli museums like the Israel Museum in Jerusalem and the Hecht Museum in Haifa.[22]
Similar cultural development is also attested at
Byzantine period
During Byzantine rule, the first hermitage in Palestine was established by the early Christian monk Hilarion at the site of modern-day Deir al-Balah. Hilarion initially built a small hut there, but during the reign of Constantius II (337–361) he set up the hermitage. Towards the end of his life, the monastery grew and began to attract numerous visitors. Hilarion resided at the monastery for a total of 22 years until his departure for Cyprus where he died in 371 AD. The hermitage was divided into several small cells constructed of mud brick and palm tree branches.[23] According to local tradition and observations from Western travelers in the 19th century, the prayer hall of the Monastery of Hilarion is currently occupied by the Mosque of al-Khidr. French explorer Victor Guérin noted that two marble columns in the mosque were possibly parts of the Byzantine-era monastery.[24]
Early Islamic period
In 632, during the early period of
The
Crusader and Ayyubid rule
Deir al-Balah was built on the ruins of the
Not long after its construction, a small suburb or village with a church was established by local farmers and traders just outside the fort. According to medieval chronicler
Following Amalric's withdrawal from his fifth offensive against Egypt in 1170, Muslim general Saladin, fighting on behalf of the Fatimids, attacked and besieged the fortress as part of his foray into the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. Despite initial gains, Darom was not captured or destroyed.[29] It later became a stronghold of the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller from Jerusalem, led by King Baldwin III.[32] After the Muslim army defeated the Crusaders in the decisive Battle of Hattin in 1187, their leader Saladin, by then the independent sultan of the Ayyubid dynasty, advanced south and captured both Ascalon and Darom by 1188. His first order was the fort's demolition, but he later decided against destroying it.[29] Instead, the fortress was substantially expanded and strengthened. "Darum", which is what the Muslims called the fortress village, was encased by a wall with 17 strong towers protected by a deep moat with stone-paved sides.[33] It hosted a garrison commanded by the emir (commander) Alam ad-Din Qaysar and served as a store for supplies and ammunition.[29]
The Crusaders recaptured the fortress on 24 May 1191 after a short siege commanded by King
Mamluk period
Following its demolition, it is not known how long Darum remained deserted, but it was eventually resettled during
It became a halting post along the newly introduced
Ottoman period
Sometime prior to the
A substantial part of Deir al-Balah's inhabitants died in 1862 because of stagnant drinking water originating from the town's swamps. The swamps were seasonal, forming each winter as a result of flooding which failed to breach the sandstone ridge.
WWI and British period
Deir al-Balah was captured by the British Army following the surrender of Khan Yunis on 28 February 1917. By April an aerodrome and an army camp were established there and Deir al-Balah became a launching point for British forces against Ottoman-held Gaza and Beersheba to the north and northeast, respectively.[50] Of the 25 British war cemeteries dating from World War I, one of the six largest was built in Deir al-Balah in March 1917.[51] It continued to be used until March 1918 and contains a total of 724 graves.[50]
Deir al-Balah became a part of the British Mandate of Palestine starting in 1922. A municipal council to administer the town was established by the British authorities in 1946, but it had limited jurisdiction over civil affairs and provided a few basic services.[52]
In the 1945 statistics, Deir al-Balah had a population of 2,560; 40 Christians and 2,520 Muslims,[53] with 14,735 dunams of land, according to an official land and population survey.[54] Of this, 327 dunams were for citrus and bananas, 472 plantations and irrigable land, 14,438 used for cereals,[55] while 39 dunams were built-up land.[56]
1947-48 war and Egyptian occupation
In the lead-up to the
In the name of pan-Arabism, the Egyptian state officially merged with the Gaza Strip and Syria between 1959 and 1961 as part of the short-lived United Arab Republic (UAR). The project fell apart before significant integration occurred and the legal status of the Gaza Strip was mostly an afterthought during the attempt to create a unified Arab state, with the Strip and its citizens not explicitly being mentioned in the proclamation declaring the founding of the UAR or in the UAR's provisional constitution.[61]
1967 war, Israeli occupation, post-Oslo autonomy
During the
When the First Intifada broke out in 1987, Deir al-Balah's residents participated in the uprising against Israeli rule. Around 30 residents died during the period of the Intifada,[59] which formally ended in 1993 with the Oslo Accords between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel. In 1994 Deir al-Balah was the first city to officially come under the control of the Palestinian National Authority as a result of the Gaza–Jericho Agreement.[63]
The city has been frequently targeted in Israeli military incursions since the
During
In the beginning of December, during the second month of the
In December 2023, the Jaffa Mosque (
Archaeology
White marble pillar shafts were built into the walls of some houses in old Deir al-Balah. They resembled the medieval-era pillars in the Temple Mount ("Haram ash-Sharif") in Jerusalem.[73]
Mosque of al-Khidr
The Mosque of al-Khidr (also called "Maqam al-Khader") is 24.3 feet (7.4 m) by 53.4 feet (16.3 m) and was built on the site of a Byzantine monastery. The northern and southern walls were buttressed and the eastern wall has three apses. The Survey of Western Palestine related in 1875 that there were Greek inscriptions on one of the steps leading to the door at the southern wall while on the floor was a broken stone slab marked by two Maltese crosses, apparently resembling a tombstone. Further slabs and Greek inscriptions were found in the eastern part of the mosque and in the courtyard. In the center is a tomb made of modern masonry that tradition claims is the tomb of Saint George ("Mar Jirjis") or al-Khidr, as he is known in Arabic.[73]
Prior to the predominance of orthodox Islam in Palestine, the region contained numerous domed structures dedicated to Muslim patron saints, among which was the Mosque of al-Khidr in Deir al-Balah. In March 2016, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities in the Gaza Strip began the restoration of the Mosque of al-Khidr with financial support from UNESCO and the Nawa Foundation. The project aims to convert the mosque-tomb into a children's cultural library.[74]
Demographics
Year | Type | Population |
---|---|---|
1596 | Defter | 1,500;[9][42] |
1863 | Estimate | 350[46] |
1870 | Census | 792 [75][76] |
1922 | Census | 916[77][78] |
1931 | Census | 1,587[79] |
1945 | Survey | 2,560[54][53] |
1982 | Census | 15,100[80] |
1997 | Census | 42,839 (with Camp)[81] |
2007 | Census | 54,439[82] |
According to a census conducted in 1922 by the British Mandate authorities, Deir al-Balah had a population of 916 inhabitants (893 Muslims, 22 Jews and one Christian).[77][78]
The census of 1931 lists 1,587 inhabitants (1,577 Muslims and 10 Christians).
In 2004 the PCBS estimated the population to be 46,159. In the 2007 census by the PCBS, the population of Deir al-Balah city alone was 54,439, making it the largest municipality in the Deir al-Balah Governorate. The camp's population was 6,438. However,
Deir al-Balah's entire population is
Economy
The Deir al-Balah Governorate's principal economic activity is services, accounting for 67.4% of the labor force. Commerce, hospitality and retail account for 12.9%, agriculture and fishing 10.1%, transportation and communication 5.4% and manufacturing 3.4%. In 2009 the unemployment rate in the governorate was 35.2% while the labor force participation rate was 38.7%.[87] In 2007 there were 1,108 business establishments in the city.[82]
Agriculture and fishing
Deir al-Balah is well known for growing date palms, an estimated 20,000 of which covered the landscape south and west of the city in the 1990s.[88] However, some 3,550 trees were uprooted or bulldozed by the Israeli Army in the early years of the Second Intifada beginning in 2000. There were an estimated 16,500 palms in Deir al-Balah in 2003. In addition to being a local delicacy, date cultivation constitutes one of the principal sources of income for many of Deir al-Balah's residents.[89] The particular type of date that is cultivated in the area is known as "Hayani."[90] It has a distinctly red color.[89] Other leading agricultural products cultivated in Deir al-Balah include citrus, almonds, pomegranates and grapes.[91]
The city has a small fishing industry and is the site of one of four wharfs in the Gaza Strip. In 2007 there were about 76 active fishing vessels employed by 550 fishermen. From 2000 to 2006, during the Second Intifada, income from fishing was halved. In order to alleviate losses resulting from a 10 kilometers (6.2 mi) fishing limit off the coast imposed by the Israeli Navy following Hamas's victory in the 2006 parliamentary elections, the Palestinian Authority Department of Fisheries has sought to construct eight artificial reefs in both Deir al-Balah and Gaza City.[92]
Education
According to the 1997 PCBS census, 87.7% of residents in Deir al-Balah over the age of 10 were literate. The number of people who finished elementary education was 5,740, while 5,964 finished primary education and 5,289 completed secondary school. In higher education, 1,763 people attained associate degrees, 1,336 attained bachelor's degrees and 97 attained higher degrees.[93]
Educational services in Deir al-Balah are under the jurisdiction of the Khan Yunis Directorate of Higher Education.[94] There were a total of 85 schools in the Deir al-Balah Governorate in 2007-08 according to the PNA's Ministry of Education and Higher Education. The Palestinian government operated 39 school while four were privately owned. The remainder were run by UNRWA and were mostly located in refugee camps in Deir al-Balah's vicinity. The total number of students in the governorate was 67,693, of which 50.3% were male 49.7% female.[87]
The Palestine Technical College, a vocational and technical college founded in 1992, is located in Deir al-Balah.[95][96] A library was added to the campus in 1998.[97]
Government
Deir al-Balah's first
A 15-member
Mayors
|
|
See also
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External links
- Welcome To The City of Dayr al-Balah
- Survey of Western Palestine, Map 19: IAA, Wikimedia commons
- Laborers in Deir al-Balah Governorate.
- Map of the Deir-al Balah Governorate Archived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine