Statistic/Fact	Value
Israeli occupation date	April 3, 1948
Distance from district center	8 (km) West of Jerusalem
Elevation from the sea	790 (meters)
Map location	See location number #6 on the map
Israeli military operation	Operation Nachshon
Israeli attacking brigade	The Palmach's Fourth Battalion
Village defenders	Arab Liberation Army (ALA) headed by 'Abd al-Qadir al-Husseini. Visit the Stories and Memories section for the letter that Abdel Qader sent to the Arab League ,on April 6th 1948, complaining for lack of weapons to defend Palestine and its people. Click here to read more about the battle for al-Qastal in Arabic
Exodus Cause	Military assault by Jewish troops
Village remains after destruction by Israelis	al-Qastal was completely destroyed, only house rubble left behind
Ethnically cleansing by Israelis	al-Qastal inhabitants were completely ethnically cleansed.
Land ownership before occupation	Ethnic Group Land Ownership (Dunums) Arab 1,415 Jewish 7 Public 24 Total 1,446
Land usage in 1945	Land Usage Type Arab (Dunum) Jewish (Dunum) Irrigated & Plantation 169 0 Planted W/ Cereal 42 0 Built up 5 0 Cultivable 211 0 Non-Cultivable 1,223 7
Population before occupation	Year Population 1922 43 1931 59 1945 90 1948 104 Est. Refugees 1998 641
Number of houses	Year Number of houses 1931 14 1948 24
Town's name through history	al-Qastal's name was derived from the Latin casteum, similarly the nearby Roman castle was also know by. The old Roman castle was renovated and named Belveer des Croises during the Crusade period.
Shrines/maqams	A shrine for a local sage known by al-Shaykh Karaki.
Water supplies	al-Qastal has several springs outside its borders to the east.
Exculsive jewish colonies on town's lands	The Jerusalem neighborhood of Mevasseret Tziyyon.
Related Maps	خرائط تفصيلية للمحافظة View from satellite Help us map this town at WikiMapia
More Information	Language External Links Arabic PalGates Hebrew Nakba in Hebrew   Nakba-Online

Bibliography and References

Town Today

According to the Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi, the village remaining structures on the village land are:
The southern, northern, and eastern slopes of the site are covered with stone rubble and the ruins of stone terraces, half-concealed by wild grass. The ruins of the old castle lie on the mountain top. An underground shelter has been built on the site, southwest of the fortress