Al-Mansi
| Al-Mansi | |
|---|---|
 Al-Mansi
|
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| Arabic | المنسي |
| Name meaning | The forgotten |
| Also spelled | 'Arab Baniha |
| Subdistrict | Haifa |
| Coordinates | 32°35′41.6″N 35°10′21.65″E / 32.594889°N 35.1726806°ECoordinates: 32°35′41.6″N 35°10′21.65″E / 32.594889°N 35.1726806°E |
| Palestine grid | 166/222 |
| Population | 1,200, (1944/45) |
| Area | 12,272 dunams 12.3 km² |
| Date of depopulation | 12–13 April 1948 |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault by Yishuv forces |
| Current localities | Midrakh Oz |
Al-Mansi (Arabic: المنسي, also called 'Arab Baniha Arabic: عرب بنيها) was a Palestinian village in the Haifa Subdistrict. It was occupied on 12 April 1948 by Israeli troops during the Battle of Mishmar HaEmek.
Al-Mansi is located on the western side of Marj Ibn 'Amer (Jezreel Valley), and is 30 km southeast of Haifa city. It is situated at an elevation of 125 meters above sea level. The total land area is (12,272 Dunums;12,272,000 m²)
In 1882 the Palestine Exploration Fund's Survey of Western Palestine described it as "a small ruined village, with springs."
In the 1922 census of Palestine conducted by the British Mandate authorities, Al-Mansi had a population 72; 68 Muslims and 4 Christians, where the Christian was Roman Catholics. This had increased in the 1931 census to 467; 461 Muslims and 6 Christians, in a total of 98 houses.
In 1944-45, al-Mansi had 292 houses, most constructed from stone. It had one elementary school, a mosque and a mill. The land used to be planted with olives, cereals and vegetable. Al-Mansi had six springs in its vicinity which supplied it with drinking water. In 1945, it had a population of 1,200 inhabitants; 1,180 Muslims and 20 Christians, and the total land area was 12,272 dunams. Of the land, Arabs used 1,391 dunams for plantations and irrigable land, 6,559 for grains, while 17 dunams were built-up (urban) areas.
On the 9th April, 1948, Golani troops informed their headquarter that “Our forces are fighting in …Mansi.. We are preparing to destroy the villages when we evacuate them.” The newspaper Filastin reported that Zionist forces had infiltrated al-Mansi on 9 April, resulting in an exchange of fire with the village's defenders. According to Fawzi al-Qawuqji, the Arab Liberation Army forces withdrew to al-Mansi on 11 April, after a "violent" counter-attack.
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