Tall al-Safi: A Depopulated Palestinian Village That Tells a Story of History and Displacement

 الأراضي المقدسة الخضراء / GHLands

Tall al-Safi, a depopulated Palestinian village, is located northwest of the Hebron district, approximately 26 kilometers from the city center. It was surrounded by the lands of several neighboring Palestinian villages, including Mughallis, Ajjur, Deir al-Dubban, Zakariyya, and Barqusya.

The village was established on one of the hills forming the western foothills of the Hebron Highlands, at an elevation ranging between 150 and 175 meters above sea level. Its strategic location overlooked several valleys and important routes, giving it both geographical and historical significance.

A Rich Heritage Spanning Thousands of Years

Tall al-Safi was home to a remarkable cultural and archaeological legacy dating back thousands of years. The village contained the remains of a Crusader fortress, ancient walls, burial sites, and a cave, in addition to the shrine of Sheikh Muhammad located to the east of the village.

The site gained particular archaeological importance following the discovery of the Tel al-Safi Inscription, which dates back to the 10th century BCE and provides evidence of the area's long history of human settlement.

A Thriving Agricultural Community

The village consisted of stone and mud-brick houses arranged in a star-shaped layout, with buildings extending along the roads and pathways leading out of the village. Tall al-Safi featured several public facilities, including a marketplace, a mosque, and a drinking well.

Its lands covered approximately 28,925 dunums, most of which were used for agriculture, the primary source of livelihood for its residents.

The village experienced steady population growth during the first half of the twentieth century. Its population stood at 644 residents in 1922, increased to 965 residents living in 208 houses in 1931, and reached approximately 1,290 residents by 1945.

Occupation and Ethnic Cleansing in 1948

Tall al-Safi became a key target during Operation An-Far, a military campaign launched by the Israeli Givati Brigade between the two truces of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

On July 7, 1948, Givati Brigade commander Shimon Avidan ordered the First Battalion to seize the Tall al-Safi area and expel the refugees sheltering there, citing concerns about infiltration by Arab forces from the east.

The village was occupied and destroyed on July 9, 1948, during the same operation that led to the capture of the nearby village of Barqusya.

Historical accounts, including those cited by Israeli historian Benny Morris, indicate that the fall of Tall al-Safi had a significant psychological impact on residents of neighboring Palestinian villages and contributed to the broader wave of displacement that accompanied the events of 1948.

Tall al-Safi Today: Remnants of a Village and Witnesses to Memory

Today, little remains of the village apart from scattered ruins covered by wild vegetation. Cactus plants, along with a number of olive and palm trees, continue to mark the landscape, while the remains of an old well and the crumbling walls of a water reservoir are still visible.

The surrounding lands are currently cultivated by Israeli farmers, who grow citrus fruits, sunflowers, and grain crops. Bedouin families occasionally pitch their tents in the vicinity.

More than seven decades after its depopulation, Tall al-Safi remains deeply embedded in Palestinian collective memory. The village stands as a testament to a long history of community life and agricultural prosperity, as well as to one of the many episodes of displacement that accompanied the Palestinian Nakba of 1948.