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Welcome To al-Walaja - الولجة (אל-ולג'ה)

District of Jerusalem
Ethnically cleansed days ago

العربية

Google Earth
Picture for al-Walaja Village - Palestine: : Let us see how the most
Gallery (213)
Statistic & Fact Value
Occupation Date October 21, 1948
Distance From District 8.5 (km) West of Jerusalem
Elevation 750 (meters)
Before & After Nakba, Click Map For Detailswhat's new
Pre-Nakba Map showing before and after destruction
Pre-Nakba Aerial Viewwhat's new
Pre-Nakba Aerial View
Map Location See location #30 on the map

View from satellite
Military Operation Either Operation Dani or Operation Ha'ar
Attacking Units Eighth Battalion of the Etziyyoni Brigade
Defenders Egyptian Muslim Brotherhoods, some Arab Liberation Army volunteers, and some local Palestinian militia.
Exodus Cause Military assault by Zionist troops
Village Temains Walaja was completely destroyed, only few deserted and partially destroyed houses remain standing to this date.
Ethnically Cleansing al-Walaja inhabitants were completely ethnically cleansed.
Clans In 1850, Walaja was the home village of the powerful Darwish family, which controlled the district of Bani Hasan (Nablus) and ten other villages.
Pre-Nakba
Land Ownership
Ethnic Group Land Ownership (Dunums)*
Arab 17,507
Jewish 35
Public 166
**Total 17,708
*Sourced from British Mandate's Village Statisitics
**Town Lands' Demarcation Maps
Land Usage
As of 1945
Land Usage Arab (Dunum)* Jewish (Dunum)*
Irrigated & Plantation 2,136 0
Olive Groves 80 0
Planted W/ Cereal 6,205 22
Built up 31 0
Arable 8,341 22
Non-Arable 9,301 13
*Sourced from British Mandate's Village Statisitics
Population
Year Population*
1596 655
1922 910
1931 1,206
1945 1,650
1948 1,914
Est. Refugees 1998 11,754
*Sourced from British Mandate's Village Statisitics
Number of Houses
Year Number of Houses
1931 202
1948 320
Near By Townswhat's new
Sataf
         
'Ayn Karim

(N)
al-Maliha
       
Battir  
   Sharafat
           
al-Qabu

al-Khadr
           
al-Walaja al-Jadeida
Schools One elementary school
Places of Warship Walaja had a mosque known by the Arba'in Mosque
Nearby Wadies & Rivers Walaja is situated on the north side of Wadi al-Sarar.
Water Supply Many abundant wells around the village, especially in the southern parts of its lands; most of the village crops were watered by irrigation from these wells and springs, see Picture section for details.
Exculsive Jewish Colonies
Who Usurped Village Lands
'Amminadav
Featured Video

Village Before Nakba

The village stood on a large hill on the side of a mountain, on the north side of Wadi al-Sarar, through which the Jerusalem−Jaffa railway passed. A secondary road linked it to a highway leading to Jerusalem. The name of the village (which meant 'the opening' in Arabic) probably referred to the natural opening in the mountain chain through which transportation routes passed. In 1596, al-Walaja was a village in the nahiya of Jerusalem (liwa' of Jerusalem) with a population of 655. It paid taxes on a number of crops, including wheat, barley, olives, and fruits, as well as on other types of produce and property, such as goats, beehives, and vineyards. In 1850 al-Walaja was the home village of the powerful Darwish family, who controlled the sub-disctrict of Bani Hasan and its ten other villages. The village was damaged in November of 1853 in the course of fighting between the Darwish family and their rivals to the south, the Lahham family. In the late nineteenth century, al-Walaja was described as a 'good-sized' village built of stone that was nestled in a recess along the slope of a hill. The residents tended vegetable gardens in a ravine that ran north of the village; they also cultivated vineyards and olive trees. The village benefitted from five groups of springs which flowed nearby.

The village houses were clustered together, separated only by narrow, winding alleys, and were built of stone, adobe, and cement. Towards the end of the Mandate the village had expanded considerably; new houses were constructed northeast and southeast of the village core. The people of al-Walaja were Muslims and attended a mosque known as the Arba'in mosque ('the mosque of forty'). The village had several shops and an elementary school. Quarries near the village supplied the building stone that was characteristic of the Jerusalem area. Wells were abundant around the village, especially in the southern parts of its lands; most of the village crops were watered by irrigation from these wells and springs, although some crops were watered only by rainfall. Grain was planted in the low, flat areas, while fruit trees were planted on the slopes. Olive trees yielded the village's most the important agricultural product. In 1944/45 a total of 6,205 dunums was allotted to cereals; 2,136 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards.

Village Occupation and Ethnic Cleaning

On the night of 21 October 1948, the Eighth Battalion of the Etziyyoni Brigade attacked and captured the village of al-Walaja. The attack was part of Operation Ha-Har (see 'Allar, Jerusalem sub-disctrict). An Associated Press report of 20 October stated that Egyptian and Israeli forces based southwest of Jerusalem had been 'locked in bloody fighting for the past five days.' The story said: 'The battle began with a full-scale Israeli attack on the Egyptian-held towns of El Walaja and Sharafat… when three Israeli battalions attempted to encircle the Egyptians at Bethlehem and Beit Jala….' These were Egyptian irregulars fighting alongside Palestinian guerrillas.

However, the occupation of al-Walaja was not permanent, and a New York Times report on 20 October stated that the Israelis were driven out of the village by successful Arab counterattacks. The History of the War of Independence corroborates this account, noting that the village was later handed over to Israel according to the terms of the armistice agreement signed with Jordan on 3 April 1949. The Israeli army entered the village, along with three other villages in the Jerusalem area (Bayt Safafa, Battir, and al-Qabu), in the weeks following the signing of the agreement.

Zionists Colonies on Village Lands

'Amminadav (163128) was established on village lands in 1950.

Village Today

A few stone houses still stand on the village site. Otherwise, the site is covered with stone rubble, and with almond trees that grow on the western terraces of the village and to the north. A spring in a valley west of the site still flows out of a stone-and-concrete structure (see photos). The 1948 Armistice line passed through the southern lands of the village. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) built refugee shelters and an elementary school on the land that became part of the West Bank. There is a white marker on the grave of one village woman; her first name, Fatima, is visible on it, but her last name is illegible. The village area is used as an Israeli picnic site; the Israeli Canada Park now lies north of it.

Source

Dr. Walid al-Khalidi, 1992: All That Remains.

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Bibliography and References

Want to browse more? 80,000 pictures were grouped in these gallaries:

Display Name Clan/Hamolah Country of Residence
علي الشيخ علي الاعرج القدس, فلسطين
فاطمة ابو عثمان عبد ربه - ابو عثمان عمان, الاردن
walajyeh الوهادنة عمان
اسحاق الدراس حجاجلة الكويت, الكويت
عطيه walaji riyadh
Hasan Khalifa الحجاجلة Amman, Jordan
صلاح الدين طارق صبحه الوهادنة الزرقاء, الاردن
احمد عبد ربه الرصيفة
حسين خليل شحاده الاعرج الكويت
razan saifi عبد ربة -
basel sabha whdane jordan, al-walja
بشار صبحا الوهادنه عمان, عمان
talal sabha الوهادنه amman
علاء اسحق رباح الاردن, الاردن
yasar daoud - -
layth hamdan - -
محمد صالح محمود شلعب الأعرج عمان, الأردن
Bayan Abu Ali Al-23raj Jordan/Amman
محمود اسماعيل خليل أبو عثمان عبد ربه - أبو عثمان عمان, الاردن
سعد الصيفي - jordan
ابو سلطان الوهــادنــة - الولجي الاردن, الولجة - القدس
كفاح - عمان, الاردن
محمد داود عبدربه -
jefree - dubai, dubai
شرف عوده الصالح JORDAN, JORDAN
فداء دغش عبد ربه california, U.S.A
Saad Abu Sheikhah - Dubai, UAE
wisam shihadeh - -
mohammed shihadeh shihadeh -
abu teen abu teen -
m7mad 7amdan - -
Anaam Irsheid Wahadneh Amman, Jordan
Manal Irsheid Wahadneh 1896, Jordan
Moh'd AlSaifi Abed Rabbuh Amman
fadwa darras Hajajleh california, usa
Issam - ILLINOIS, USA
مح عوض الله الحجاجله -
علي الشيخ علي الأعرج دبي, الإمارات
Omar Abu Dayyeh Wahadneh Amman, Jordan
Basheir.Darras hajajleh amman, jordan
Dua'a Al Saifi abd rabbu -
wala' abukhyarah - الولجة
a Hajajlah -
a Hajajlah -
ماهر محمد محمود دغش عبد ربه عمان
حسين الجعيدي - Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Khaled Flaifel - Amman, Jordan
anas al absi abedrabuo dmmam, KSA
محمد رباح الاعرج الدوحة, قطر
abla Al a'raj Al A'raj Amman, Jordan
Ibrahim Abuhasan Ala3raj Boson, Ma, USA, USA
ENG_ASHRAF WHDAN whdan jordan_amman
عبير عمر عبد ربه عمان , الاردن
محمد خضر ابو التين - florida
maher rabah - amman
علي الامام علي الوهادنه -
ابو التين الاعرج -
Muneer Al-Saifi Abed Rabbu Amman, Jordan
وهيب أبو التين الأعرج Amman, Jordan
محمد نظام دغش عبد ربه الزرقاء, الاردن
Mahmoud Darras Hajajleh Amman, Jordan
Mahmoud Al Haj - jordan, Amman
ابو عادل ارشيد وهدان الرياض, السعودية
اراهيم عبد ربه عمان, الاردن
gigi_walajeeya Awadallah nj, usa
ALBERTO DARRAS HASSAN Cochabamba, Bolivia
وجيه ابوعلي الاعرج -
مهندالاطرش الاطرش -
yazan zahi al-shalabi صبيح jordan, kufor ra3i
اية احمد ابو حسين عبد ربه الاردن, الاردن
رياض عبد النبي عبد النبي القدس
Aziz Ali Abu-Khiarah Hajajleh JORDAN
Ali Aziz Abu-Khiarah HAJAJLEH JORDAN
حاتم المصري الشيخ علي - -
abo alteen ابو التين الولجه
mahdi abu dahab جمهور بيت عنان, بيت عنان
Rasheed Darras Al-Hajajlah -
Azmi Al sheikeh - -
Mohammad Hasan Khalifa Al-Hajajleh -
Jamil Darras Hajajlah -
Khalil Al Saifi عبد ربه -
Sulieman Sabha Wahdan amman, Jordan
areen fayes kamal abu keshek - -
alaa azmi ibrahim alshiekh al-araj ramallah, plaestine
SAID ABDELHADI DARRAS Hajajleh ALBERTA, CANADA
ABO OMAR DARRAS HAJALI UAE, UAE
Nabil Sari Al-Hajajlah Amman, Jordan
Awad abu ali Abu Ali al - araj -
Raba'a Salameh Salameh Jordan, Jordan
Mohammed Abu-Khiarah Hajajleh Frankfurt, Germany
Jamil Al-Saifi Abed Rabbu Amman, Jordan
kuba3ee wahdan amman, jordan
Ahmad Jubran Wahadnah Valencia, Espaٌa
ali darras hajajlah amman, jordan
khaled wahdadneh Zarka, jordan
Tareq Absi Abed Rabbu Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Mohammed El Aydi Wahadneh Amman, Jordan
yousef darras hajajleh jordan, jordan
AZZAM KHALIFA HAJAJLEH VIRGINIA, USA
Ra'ed Abu Rizeq Al-A'araj Amman, Jordan
Moawia khalifeh Hajajlah -
Nidal Khalifa Hajajlah -
Alex Ali Irshaid Wehadneh CA, USA
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