al-'Ulmaniyya

The village of Al-‘Almaniyya was located in the southwestern section of the Hula Plain, near the western shore of Lake Hula. A secondary road connected it to the main road leading to Safad.

In 1596, Al-‘Almaniyya was recorded as a village in the subdistrict of Jira, district of Safad, with a population of 55. The villagers paid taxes on agricultural products including wheat, barley, and other forms of produce and resources such as goats, beehives, water buffalo, and orchards.

In more recent times, the village was built along a north-south axis, and some of its homes were owned by members of the Bedouin tribe of Al-Zubayd, who lived approximately 1.5 kilometers from the village center. The population of Al-‘Almaniyya was predominantly Muslim. The villagers relied on nearby springs for their domestic water needs. Agriculture—especially the cultivation of grains—was the cornerstone of the village’s economy.

In the 1944–1945 agricultural season, a total of 1,135 dunums of land was allocated for cereal production. Archaeological evidence suggests that the area had long been inhabited and used for livestock. In addition, to the northwest of the village were artificial caves carved into rock.

Occupation and Depopulation

The Israeli historian Benny Morris presents two narratives regarding the depopulation of Al-‘Almaniyya:

· The first suggests that the residents fled after the retaliatory raid (in reality, a massacre) carried out by the Haganah on the nearby village of Al-Husayniyya on 18 January 1948.

· The second, based on Israeli military intelligence, reports that the villagers left on 20 April 1948, three months later, immediately after the launch of Operation Yiftach—either as a result of a direct military assault or due to fear of such an assault.

These two accounts are not necessarily contradictory; it is likely that the first wave of displacement was partial or temporary, while the second was more definitive, as nearly the entire Eastern Galilee had been depopulated by the time Operation Yiftach concluded.

The Village Today

The site is now densely overgrown with eucalyptus trees, making it difficult to discern any remnants of the village. Construction work is underway to build a road to the Hula Nature Reserve. The surrounding lands are partially cultivated, while the remainder consists of wetlands or has been incorporated into the nature reserve.

Israeli Settlements on Village Lands

There are no Israeli settlements on the original lands of Al-‘Almaniyya. However, the settlement of Yesud HaMa'ala (Settlement Code: 207273), established in 1883, is located approximately 2.5 kilometers southeast of the former village site.

Source: All That Remains by Walid Khalidi.