Summary
Wadi ‘Ara village at the western entrance to the The Triangle, attacked on 9 May 1948, deserted for eleven months as a no man’s land, whose inhabitants kept returning to their houses and fields at mortal risk and returned for good in April 1949, on the eve of the Triangle’s transfer, under a locally negotiated ceasefire — without direct expulsion by the Israeli army and without official Israeli approval, in Manna’s account (Nakba and Survival, PDF p.191-192, 195-196).
Details
- On 9 May 1948 Alexandroni Brigade soldiers occupied part of Kufr Qari’ and expelled most villagers; dozens of armed inhabitants, aided by neighbours, repulsed the attack and caused casualties; researcher Sara Osetski-Lazar, as cited, concluded Iraqi ARA volunteers helped halt the attack but inhabitants then decided to leave to escape further danger (Nakba and Survival, PDF p.195).
- The village became a deserted no man’s zone, its west held by Israeli forces and its east by Iraqi-Jordanian forces; villagers trying to harvest were stopped by Israeli landmines and gunfire, and some were killed or wounded going back for provisions, plowing and planting (Nakba and Survival, PDF p.195-196).
- Hasan ‘Isa ‘Athamna led a delegation of notables to nearby kibbutz Kfar Glickson to secure a ceasefire agreement, after which the inhabitants returned in April 1949; Manna leaves open whether the Israeli government and army turned a blind eye so as not to compromise the major agreement with Jordan, noting the authenticating testimonies come mainly from the Arab side (Nakba and Survival, PDF p.196).