al-Zanghariyya

The village of Zahlaq was located on the side of a broad hill that gently sloped eastward. It faced the Golan Heights and overlooked the Jordan Valley. Several springs lay to the northwest, along the Wadi al-Ghara. A dirt road connected Zangariyya to the main Safad–Tiberias road to the west.

The name "Zangariyya" was given in honor of the Zangariyya Bedouin tribe, who were the first to use the site as a seasonal encampment and later gradually settled there. The other name, Zahlaq, may derive from the Arabic root relating to slippage or landslides, referring to the terrain's susceptibility to soil erosion.

The homes in Zangariyya—built of mud and stone—were divided into two clusters: East Zangariyya and West Zangariyya, separated by a distance of approximately 275 to 365 meters. The population was predominantly Muslim.

The surrounding lands were primarily used as pasture, although parts were cultivated using rainfed and irrigated agriculture. Residents grew cereals, fruits, and onions, and raised sheep and buffalo. In 1944/45, a total of 7,265 dunums of land was dedicated to cereal cultivation.

The Zangariyya Bedouins grazed their livestock in nearby pastures and migrated seasonally—wintering in the Jordan Valley and summering on the eastern slopes of the Galilee hills. Fishing in Lake Tiberias (the Sea of Galilee) was also an important livelihood for some. Archaeological evidence, including ruins of old buildings and a basalt stone enclosure, suggests the site was previously inhabited in ancient times.

Occupation and Depopulation

The "Broom Operation" (Mivtza HaMat'ate) was a military offensive launched by the Haganah on May 4, 1948, as part of Operation Yiftach. The objective was to “cleanse” the area east of Safad, near the Jordan River.

According to orders given to Palmach company commanders, the villages of Zangariyya, al-Tabigha, and Arab al-Shamaliyya were to be attacked, their residents expelled, and their homes blown up. The orders, according to Israeli historian Benny Morris, emphasized that "friendly Arabs" should not be harmed.

As the Palmach columns approached, many villagers fled eastward to Syria. On the following day, Palmach sappers systematically demolished over fifty homes in Zangariyya and nearby villages.

A telegram sent from the commander of the Arab Liberation Army to the Syrian High Command confirmed that Zangariyya had been occupied on May 4, and reported that this was followed by an assault on Safad.

At the time, the New York Times reported that during this operation (Operation Broom), Israeli forces spread panic among Arab residents of Galilee towns, prompting many civilians to flee toward the Lebanese and Syrian borders. According to British sources, Syrian authorities reported that this attack alone resulted in 2,000 new refugees entering Syria.

A week after the first truce in the war, the New York Times cited Syrian officials stating that on June 17, Israeli forces violated the ceasefire by setting fire to Zangariyya, possibly completing the village’s destruction.

The Village Today

All that remains of Zangariyya are clusters of basalt stones, which were once parts of twelve houses. While most of the houses were demolished, some wall remnants still stand. Near the remains, stone enclosures once used as animal pens are still visible. The area is now used as pastureland by the nearby Israeli agricultural farm, Karei Deshe, located southwest of the site.

Israeli Settlements on Village Lands

In 1949, Israel established the settlement of Mekbaleit on the village lands, to the west of the site. The private farm Karei Deshe, founded in 1954, is located approximately 8 kilometers southwest of the village site.

An indexed gazetteer of Israeli localities also lists a settlement named BidaHashil, reportedly originally called Zangariyya Bet, though no further information is available. It is possible that this settlement was abandoned in the 1950s.

Source: All That Remains by Walid Khalidi.