In Pictures: Seven Things You Should Know about Sheikh Jarrah’s History

[yankeedoodle]

In Pictures: Seven Things You Should Know about Sheikh Jarrah's History
The occupied neighbourhood of East Jerusalem has been the scene of intense protests, as Israeli occupation officers use mounted horses and stun grenades against Palestinian protesters
http://vpalestine.org/2021/05/13/in-pictures-seven-things-you-should-know-about-sheikh-jarrahs-history/


Air views of Palestine. Newer Jerusalem. The American Colony in Sheikh Jarrah quarter



Sheikh Jarrah's history begins in the 12th century with Hussam al-Din al-Jarrahi, a personal physician to the legendary Islamic general Saladin, whose armies wrested Jerusalem from crusader control. The epithet jarrah in Arabic means surgeon and Sheikh is an honorific given to religious and community leaders. Jarrahi lent the area his name through his tomb, which is located along the Nablus road. In the 19th century map above, it appears as a small grey rectangle, located dead centre near the top. (Image: WikiMedia)



The neighbourhood is located in northern Jerusalem, outside the walls of the Old City, in an area that begins on the slopes of Mount Scopus, the site of today's Hebrew University. A few well-off Muslim families began building large houses in the neighbourhood in the 1860s, eventually drawing others to the area. (Image produced between 1890 and 1900, Library of Congress)



From the 1880s onwards, the area drew American and some European Christians, who wanted to build a utopian society along Biblical lines in Jerusalem. Members of the American Colony settled in Sheikh Jarrah working as farmers and teachers in local Muslim and Jewish schools. The aerial image above shows northern Jerusalem, including Sheikh Jarrah. (Library of Congress, 1931)



After the Ottoman defeat in the First World War, Britain established a mandate in Palestine and stationed troops from across the British Empire in Jerusalem. Due to its  strategic importance, artillery units were placed on the slopes of Mount Scopus. In the picture above, dated to 1918, Australian soldiers are seen riding through Sheikh Jarrah on their way to Mount Scopus. (Library of Congress)



Goats and sheep graze on land in Sheikh Jarrah in this picture dated to 1940. According to Ottoman records dating to around the turn of the 20th century, the area had a Muslim majority, with 167 families. Today the Palestinian population is around 3,000. (Mason Photo Service/Library of Congress)



After the Nakba and the establishment of Israel, the area fell into Jordanian control and Palestinian families, who had been expelled from areas that are now part of Israel, settled in Sheikh Jarrah. Jordanian rule would continue until the 1967 war, which resulted in the Israeli occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza. All have remained under Israeli occupation since, but the occupied-East Jerusalem was unilaterally annexed by Israel in 1980. (David Shankbone/Creative Commons)



In this picture from 2010, Palestinians protest against Israeli settler appropriation of Palestinian homes, buildings and land. Since the 80s settlers, backed by Israeli police officers, have seized property from Palestinian Jerusalemites on the pretext that they are being returned to Jewish ownership. Israeli courts remain the final arbiters in such cases despite having no legal authority over the territory because it is occupied land. (AFP)