From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kafr Yasif |
Downtown Kafr Yasif |
|
| Hebrew |
כפר יאסיף |
| Arabic |
كفر ياسيف |
| Name meaning |
"Joseph's village" |
| Government |
Local council (from 1925) |
| Also spelled |
Kfar Yasif (officially)
Kafar Yasef (unofficially)
|
| District |
North |
| Population |
8,300 (2005) |
| Jurisdiction |
3,194 dunams (3.2 km²) |
| Head of municipality |
Awni Toma |
Kafr Yasif also spelled Kfar Yasif or Kafar Yasef, (Hebrew: כפר יאסיף; Arabic: كفر ياسيف) is an Arab local council in the North District of Israel. It is located a few kilometers northeast of the city of Acre. It is almost evenly populated by Muslims and Christians as well as housing a minor population of Druze.
[edit] History
In 1925, Kafr Yasif was one of the few Arab villages to receive local council status during the British mandate era. The population then was 57% Christian with the remainder being mostly Muslim and Druze. In 1939 the British Army burned down half of the village in response to an attack on British soldiers. It was later discovered the militiamen were not from Kafr Yasif and the town was rebuilt with a school and a renovated city hall. Before the 19th century, there also existed a small Jewish community and cemetery.[1]
Kafr Yasif was captured by Israel in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War during the Haganah's offensive Operation Ben-Ami which also took control of Acre. Unlike many captured Arab towns, the majority of the Arab population did not flee the area. However during the war some residents of nearby villages mostly from al-Birwa, al-Manshiyya and Kuwaykat took refuge in Kafr Yasif. On February 28, 1949, most of the 700 refugees that had taken refuge in the town "were put into trucks and driven to the front lines, where they were forced to cross the frontier border into Lebanon."[2][3] Kafr Yasif is one of the few Arab towns in the Galilee today that has been in complete Arab ownership without confiscation of land by Israel.[4]
The tomb of the monotheistic prophet, al-Khadr is located in Kafr Yasif and is annually visited by Druze on January 25.[5] Al-Khadr is the Arabic name for St. George in Christianity.
[edit] People associated with Kafr Yasif
- Jawad Bolous - former resident, political lawyer in East Jerusalem
- Habeeb Bolous - former resident, writer and lecturer.
- Mahmoud Darwish - received secondary education in Kafr Yasif
- Amal Murkus - resident, popular Arabic singer in Israel
- Ahmed Safia - former resident, political lawyer in East Jerusalem
- Haseeb Shehadeh - former resident, fled in 1948 and is now a researcher
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
