An Illustration of the complexity of the land problem- the case Ma'lul Palestinians Arabs (Nazareth sub-district) in Palestine before 1948, British Mandate: A Survey of Palestine: Volume I - Page 299. Section 8: Administrative Problems Regarding to State Holdings : (d)

CHAPTER VIII.

155. The Tel esh Shauk scheme (GP /10/26) covers an area of 2,181 dunums of irrigated land divided into 51 plots varying in area between 15 and 52 dunums each of which is leased to a family. The settlers have been provided with accommodation for themselves and for their animals and a system of irrigation has been laid out. On their arrival they were provided with advances of money to enable them to make a fair start. The settlers are undoubtedly enjoying better conditions since they have been resettled than they ever experienced in the past.

156. Some 4,225 dunums were purchased for the Muqeibla scheme (GP /7 /2) and 2,094 dunums for the Beit Qad scheme (GP /7 /1). A number of settlers were placed by the Development Officer on both areas but, later, the settlers of Beit Qad were transferred with their consent to Muqeibla in order to leave the Beit Qad land free for direct agricultural production by Government. There are now 50 families settled at Muqeibla occupying plots nearly all of which measure 80 dunums. The settlers have entered into 49 year leases with Government and are satisfactorily cultivating their allotments. As in the case of the Tel esh Shank scheme the settlers at Muqeibla were also granted loans.

157. The Arab Sabarji are a semi-nomadic tribe consisting of about 120 persons who had been subsisting mainly on their flocks and herds and who had been trespassing on privately owned land. Although they were not landless in the sense of having been displaced from land which they formerly occupied owing to its being transferred to Jews, Government has settled them on a State Domain at Kafr Misr in Beisan sub-district. (The area of land allotted to them is 1,802 dunums for cultivation (GP/10/16/9 and 10) and 30 dnnums for a camp site (GP/10/16 (25) Leases have been concluded between Government and thirty heads of families representing the tribe.

(d) An illustration of the complexity of the land problem the case of the Ma'lul Arabs.

158. The following case, that of the Arabs of Ma'lul village in the Nazareth sub-district, is described below as an example of the difficulties by which the Administration may be faced when attempting to give effect to the dual obligations of Article 6 of the Mandate and to. ensure the retention for Arab peasants of a sufficient area of land for their subsistence. The areas quoted throughout this sub-section are in terms of old Turkish dunums; an old Turkish dunum is 919.3 square metres.

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