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This article is about the Palestinian village south of Jerusalem. For the battle during the Arab invasion of Persia, see
Battle of Walaja.
Al-Walaja (Arabic: الولجة) is a Palestinian town located in an enclave in the West Bank Seam Zone,[1] four kilometers northwest of the city of Bethlehem in the Bethlehem Governorate and is also a part of Israel's Jerusalem municipality. The town's original location was the opposite side of its current location on the armistice line in modern-day Israel.[2] According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics the village had a population of approximately 1,700 mostly Muslim inhabitants in 2006.
Approximately half of the town's total land area has been confiscated by Israeli authorities for the building of the Har Gilo and Gilo settlements adjacent to al-Walaja, and closed off areas to the south and west of it.[3] The town's inhabitants have also experienced the cutting down of fruit orchards and house demolition due to the absence of building permits.[4]
[edit] Former town
| al-Walaja |
| Arabic |
الولجة |
| Also Spelled |
al-Walaje |
| District |
Jerusalem |
| Population |
1,650 (1945) |
| Jurisdiction |
17,708 dunams (17.7 km²) |
| Date of depopulation |
October 21, 1948 |
| Cause(s) of depopulation |
Military assault by Jewish forces |
| Current localities |
Amminadav |
The remains of the old village of al-Walaja is located less than two kilometers to the east of the new town on the Israeli side of the Green Line. The old village was captured by Israel's Etziyyoni Brigade during Operation Dani in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. The ranks of the village's defense consisted of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and the Arab Liberation Army as well as a number of local militiamen. It was reclaimed by the latter Arab forces more than once before it capitulated to Israeli troops on October 21, 1948.[5]
[edit] Population
According to a census taken by the British Mandate government, al-Walaja had a population of 1,650 inhabitants in 1945 and a total land area of 17,708 dunams. It is estimated that more than 11,000 Palestinian refugees are traced back to al-Walaja.[6] The Israeli town of Aminadav and a park was built over the old village's land.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
