| Umm al-Faraj | |
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Umm al-Faraj
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| Arabic | أُم الفرج |
| Also Spelled | Um el-Faraj, La Fierge |
| District | Acre |
| Coordinates | |
| Population | 800[1] (1945) |
| Area | 825[1] dunums |
| Date of depopulation | 21 May 1948[2] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault by Yishuv forces |
| Current localities | Ben Ami |
Umm al-Faraj (Arabic: أم الفرج, known to the Crusaders as La Fierge) was a Palestinian village, depopulated in 1948.
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The village was situated on a flat spot in the Acre plain, 10.5 kilometers (6.5 mi) northeast of Acre.[3]
The village was known to the Crusaders as Le Fierge.[3]
An inscription in marble, built into the wall above the gate of the village mosque, dates this building to 1254 H, (1838-39 C.E.).[4]
In the late nineteenth century, the village of Umm al-Faraj was described as being built of stones and with a population of 200. The villagers planted fig, olive, mulberry and pomegranate trees.[5]
The older houses in the village were built close together and formed a circle, while the homes build after 1936 were scattered among the orchards.[3] The entire population of Umm al-Faraj were Muslim, and lived by agriculture.[3] In 1944/45 a total of 745 dunams (0.745 km2; 0.288 sq mi) was used for citrus and bananas, 18 dunams (0.018 km2; 0.0069 sq mi) were used for cereals, while 42 dunams (0.042 km2; 0.016 sq mi) were irrigated or used for orchards.[3][6]
During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Umm al-Faraj was assaulted by Israel's Carmeli Brigade in the second stage of Operation Ben'Ami. The operational order, issued 19 May 1948, was to "attack with the aim of conquest, the killing of adult males, destruction and torching."[7] The assault came on the 20–21 May 1948, when Carmeli forces attacked Umm al-Faraj together with Kabri, al Tell and Nahar, and then "demolished them," according to Morris.[8]
The Israeli settlement of Ben Ami was established in 1949, in part on village land.[9]
The Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi described the village remains in 1992: "Only the stone mosque remains. It is shut and stands in a state of decay amid tall wild grass. Many trees that might predate the village's destruction can be seen. The nearby lands are cultivated; a banana grove belongs to the Ben Ammi settlement."[9]
