Al-Tuffah

At-Tuffah (Arabic: حي التفاح‎, translation: "the Apple") is a district of Gaza City,[1] located northeast of the Old City and is divided into eastern and western halves.[2]

At-Tuffah has existed since Mamluk rule over Gaza in the 15th-century. According to Ottoman tax records, it was a small district containing 57 households. The southern part of at-Tuffah was called "ad-Dabbaghah." This neighborhood contained Gaza's slaughterhouse and tanners' facilities during Ottoman times. The northern subdivision was named "Bani Amir."[3] It was one of Gaza's five districts by at least the late 19th century.[4]

Home to the British War Cemetery, al-Tuffah also contains Gaza's public library and a number of Palestinian Red Crescent schools.[5] In the 2008-2009 Israel-Gaza conflict, at least ten Palestinians were killed in the district, including four children.[6] Hamas organized a mass wedding in the district in early August 2009.[7]

References

  1. ^ Butt, 1995, p.9.
  2. ^ Sheehan, 1999, pp.428-429.
  3. ^ Sharon, 2009, p.29.
  4. ^ Durward, 1913, p.266. The other four districts were Shuja'iyya, al-Daraj, Zeitoun, and the southeastern quarter.
  5. ^ Education in Gaza Department of Political Science, McGill University.
  6. ^ Two schools housing refugees shelled in bloodied Gaza Electronic Intifada. 2009-01-06.
  7. ^ Hamas organizes mass wedding for 550 Gaza couples. Ma'an News Agency. 2009-08-05.

Bibliography