safed.co.li

Category: History

  • Safed – The Key to the North in 1948

    Safed played a key role in the War for Independence in 1948. The Operation to secure Safed was called Operation Yiftach and it was launched on April 30, 1948.

    April 15, 1948 Safed, 1948

    When the British officially withdrew from Safed, and from other areas throughout Palestine, the Palmach was ready. They had already infiltrated into Safed and were ready to help increase the defensive line for the Jews who were besieged in the Jewish quarter. The Arabs had already put themselves in control of the strategic points in the city including the police fortress on Mount Cana’an. This was an ancient fortress in the town. They also had a very strategically located claim to the Shalva House. In addition, the Arab population in Safed was thought to be about 12,000 while the Jewish population was only 1,700. Most of these Jews were elderly and religious.

    April 28, 1948

    On this day, the Hagana forces went and took over the Rosh Pinah police fortress and a neighboring army camp. Going around Mount Cana’an, the Palmach was able to occupy the villages of Birya and Ein Zeitun in the North of Safed. This created an open corridor for them that lead into the besieged Jewish quarter of Safed. Supplies were, therefore, able to be brought from this holding ground into the starving Jewish quarter of Safed.

    May, 1948

    The first Jewish attack in Safed occurred on May 6, 1948. Unfortunately, it was not successful since the Arabs brought in reinforcements and started to use artillery. Then, on the evening of May 9th, Haganah launched a mortar barrage on key sites in Safed. Plamach infantry, fighting bitterly, were able to take the citadel, Beit Shalva and the police fort. These were Safed’s three most strategic and dominant buildings. On May 10th, mortars continued to hit Arab neighborhoods. As many as 10,000 Arabs fled town at this time. Among those who left was the family of Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas. This enabled the Jews to take control of a continuous area in the eastern and upper sections of the Galilee. The city was officially conquered by the Jewish fighting forces on May 11, 1948 and they secured the empty Arab quarters at this time.

    Safed, a Jewish City

    As a result of Operation Yiftach, Safed became a completely Jewish town. Today, the population of Safed numbers approximately 20,000 Jews. It has immigrants from all over the world and has an incredible artist’s colony. Many of the original buildings bear the marks of the battle from 1948, and can still be visited today as a standing and living memorial to the fighting that took place there.

     

  • Safed in the 1930s – with the Abbo Family

    This weekend, I was fortunate enough to go to a party at my dear friend, Rafi Abbo’s house. The party was in memory of an incident that had occurred to this family decades ago in Safed. Little did I know that my friend, who I have known for over a decade, is part of the rich heritage and history of Safed.

    This story, which he told, exemplifies how one family helped others from their home in Safed, even at risk to their own lives. The Abbo family has lived in Safed since the 19th century, and has influenced the people of Safed throughout the generations.

    Illegal Immigrants in the 1930s Safed in the 1930s

    People who were oppressed or escaping persecution always knew that the Abbo home in Safed was a safe haven for them. In the early 1930s, the home became a way station for Jewish immigrants who were considered illegal by the ruling British. The entire Abbo family was active in aiding these Jews. Raphael Abbo would take immigrants on foot across the northern border to their home. His father, Meir, would give them both shelter and clothing. They would make appropriate false papers for these Jews and help them to resettle in Palestine. Meir had a close connection to an Arab who was a longtime government worker. Through the Arab, he was able to get original stamps to prepare documents showing that these new immigrants had actually been born in Palestine.

    A Tip Comes

    After working quietly for two years, the Abbo family was raided by the British. On January 24, 1935, the British made a surprise visit to the Abbo home and searched it. The stamps had been hidden in the body of an oil lamp. The chief inspector was just about to look in the lamp when a sheet of paper fell out of it. It was King George’s reply to a letter that Meir Abbo had sent to him congratulating him on becoming king!

    Running Out

    With shock, the British inspectors refolded the note, replaced it in the lamp, asked for an apology from the Abbo family and left the house! The Abbos were actually speechless for quite awhile – in disbelief at the miracle that had occurred. Meir Abbo was so excited and amazed that he wrote a note to future generations in his prayer book. He wrote that the 12th of Shvat, 5695, when the government searched the house and they were spared, was to be a day of celebration and praise.

    And so I sat, at Rafi Abbo’s table on the 12th of Shvat, celebrating this miracle with his family and admiring this part of Safed history that lives on to this day.

     

  • Arab Riots of 1929 in Safed

    Safed Jews, along with those in a number of other Jewish areas, endured a horrific Arab riot in 1929. Between 1922 and 1928, the relationship between Arabs and Jews had been tolerable and relatively peaceful in Safed and in other areas in Palestine. This was soon to change, however.

    1929 Safed Riots in 1929

    In late 1928, a new phase of violence began that would have terrible consequences for the Jews in Safed and in other areas of Palestine. There were minor disruptions that set off the riots that involved disputes about the right to pray at the Western Wall (Kotel) in Jerusalem. In August, 1929, these disputes led to an outbreak of Arab violence. Haj Amin al-Husseini, the Mufti of Jerusalem, declared that Jews were endangering the mosques and other Islamic holy sites. He called on all Arabs to slaughter the Jews with his words, “Itback al-Yahud.”

    The British Lack of Help

    On August 22, 1929 Jewish leaders in Palestine met with the British Deputy High Commissioner to make him aware of the fears of Arab riots. The British Commissioner assured the Jews that he was in control of the situation and that his government would protect the Jews. The next day, the Riots of 1929 started through Palestine and lasted for seven days. The British did virtually nothing during this time to keep the Jews safe.

    August 23, 1929

    On this day, Arab mobs attacked Jews in many areas of Palestine, including Jerusalem, Motza, Hebron, Safed, Jaffa and more. The Haganah (a Jewish defense force which would later become the Israeli Army)  defended the Jews of Jerusalem and were able to stop the riots there in a day or two. The violence in Jerusalem, however, started by rumors about Jews defiling Muslin holy places and other such fabrications, created even more problems in the rest of the country. Attacks on Tel Aviv and Haifa were thwarted by Jewish resistance, but areas like Hebron and Safed were hit hard. In Hebron, 67 Jews were killed and in Safed, 18 were massacred. In total, all around Palestine, over 133 Jews were killed and more than 300 were wounded.

    Safed Museum

    There is a poignant museum in Safed called the Meiri Museum of Safed History that shows what happened there in 1929. Many of the pictures are incredibly graphic and show what the Jewish people underwent during this horrific time in Safed history.

    Results of the Riots

    As a result of the riots, many of the Jews left Safed and all Jews were sent out of Hebron. The British Colonial Secretary, Lord Passfield, announced the formation of a Commission of Inquiry into the riots. Although the British had done nothing to protect the Jews during the riots, they investigated the riots after they were over. In 1930 they issued a new policy whitepaper. This paper was clearly pro-Arab and recommended limiting Jewish immigration and land ownership in Palestine.  In essence, the 1930 Paper punished the Jews for the riots and supported the Churchill Paper of 1922. The Zionist movement was incredibly insulted by these conclusions.

  • Safed Massacre Of 1929

    Relative Peace

    Between the years of 1922-1928, the Jews and Arabs of Palestine seemed to coexist in relative peace. Late in the year 1928, however, the relationship became not just rocky, but downright violent, beginning with minor scuffles between the two groups. The subject of these disputes was focused on the right of the Jews to pray at that famous remnant of the Jewish temple, the Western Wall, in Jerusalem. Mayhem ensued in 1929 when Hadj Amin al-Husseini incited Arab hatred by stating that the Jews had placed Arab mosques and other holy Moslem sites in danger.Safed Massacre Of 1929

    The Jews held a march in the Jewish city of Tel Aviv on August 14, 1929. Six thousand Jews chanted the words, “The Wall is ours.” On the 15th, hundreds of Jews descended upon the Western Wall to demonstrate in support of their right to worship there. The next day, Friday, August 16, an inflammatory sermon was preached resulting in a rally cobbled together by the Supreme Moslem Council. The demonstrators marched to the Wall, where they burned prayer books and the notes of Jewish supplicants, placed by tradition into the cracks of the Wall.

    Cruel Slaughter

    On Friday August 23, the violence moved outside the confines of Jerusalem, to many other parts of the country as bands of Arabs attacked the Jews. In many locations, the mobs were joined by Arab policemen. Attacks on Jews in the cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa were well-defended by armed Jews, while Hebron suffered the worst with the cruel slaughter of 67 Jewish men and women. In Safed, 18 Jews were killed. Altogether, across the country, there were 133 Jewish deaths and more than 300 injured.

    A resident of Safed at the time of the massacre, David Hacohen had been away at the time of slaughter, reaching the city two days later. He believes he was the first to arrive in the city from the outside in the aftermath of the pogrom. Hacohen remembers that the official statement released by the British said that the “disturbances” had broken out on August 29, at 6:15, that the army had arrived by 8:35, and that the restoration of order was immediate. The statement went on to report some fatal casualties and many burnt houses, but claimed that Jewish inhabitants had been moved to safety and that calm prevailed in the city of Safed.

    Ongoing Pogrom

    Meanwhile, rumors continued to fly that the pogrom in Safed was ongoing, but the British Government House gave no further information. Two days later, Hacohen managed to find his way to the town where the Jewish elders of the cities fell upon him weeping bitter tears. Said Hacohen, “Inside the houses I saw the mutilated and burned bodies of the victims of the massacre, and the burned body of a woman tied to the grille of a window.”

    Referring to the marauding Arabs, Hacohen continued, “They slaughtered the schoolteacher, Aphriat, together with his wife and mother, and cut the lawyer, Toledano, to pieces with their knives. Bursting into the orphanages, they smashed the children’s heads and cut off their hands. I myself saw the victims.”

    The total loss to Jewish life and property was 18 killed, about 40 wounded and 200 houses burned and looted.

  • Modern History Of Safed

    The history of Safed dates back to the time of the great Temple in Jerusalem and the events of the city have ceased to halt during the past 2,000 years. Just as during the past millennium, the last 200 years in Safed have been active ones and the city has seen its fair share of natural destruction, wars, rebirth and celebration. Here in our section on the modern history of Safad, we explore the city’s history in the modern era. Find out everything you ever wanted to know about the city of Safed.

    19th Century SafedModern History

    Learn about the history of the Abbo family, one of the oldest families in Safed. Enjoy this fascinating family story and discover more about the intrigues of Safed through this one family that remembers it all.

    Riots And Wars Of The Modern Era

    Unfortunately, Safed, like the rest of Israel, has seen its fair share of riots, war and destruction. Read on to find out more about the riots of 1929 and 1936, the battle for Safed in 1948 and the about how Israel’s War of Independence affected the city. Enjoy the exciting recounting of what Safed residents describe as the liberation of their city. Also read about more tragic events like the massacre of 1974 and the 2006 2nd Lebanon War.

    A Time For Celebration

    As Safed is a city built upon the layers of ruins caused over the centuries due to the numerous earthquakes in the area, it is an exciting city for archeological exploration. Check out our article on excavating Safed and learn all about the modern archeological digs unearthing the many layers of Safed. Also enjoy our articles on how Safed celebrates the many Jewish holidays throughout the year and discover the rituals undertaken by Safed residents during Chanukah, Succot, Passover, After Passover, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Purim, and Independence Day. Also hear about Ethiopian immigrants in Safed and about how city has worked at absorbing these new residents and about the many complications that can arise when trying to buy property in Safed.

  • Restoring The Citadel Site

    Thanks to the Conservation Department of the Israel Antiquities Authority, Citadel Hill in the city of Safed has undergone significant development and restoration. Citadel Hill is an important urban landmark. It is situated at the hub of the old city of Safed and holds center stage as it commands the highest point of the highest city in the land. All this serves to give the site the characteristics of an acropolis.

    Iconoclastic Nature Restoring The Citadel

    In its present incarnation, the locale serves as a visible monument to the city’s history as well as underpinning the iconoclastic nature of Safed, juxtaposed as it is with a modern city center and a heavy concentration of Orthodox Jewish residents. The unique landscape of the Citadel provides visitors and residents alike with a breathtaking view and a large green area for picnicking.

    The archaeological analysis of the various components of the Safed citadel is a massive project still in its infancy. In the northern part of the complex alone, archaeologists have exposed a round tower, attributed to the Beibar ruler Salah-a-din’s conquest of the citadel in 1188, as well as a bell-shaped cistern. Below this is situated a Crusader water cistern, along with an inner wall and arrow loops. Further on is a gate tower and ramp from the Mamluk period along with a hidden underground passageway.

    Observation Points

    When Israel declared statehood in 1948, the Crusader and Mamluk citadel remnants were used as the backdrop for a city park, which was designed by Shlomo Oren, a landscape architect. Besides its green areas and flora, the park provides observation points for viewing vistas both far and near, as well as a memorial to the War of Independence soldiers who fell in the line of duty.

    Fortifications in Safed dating back to the time of the Second Temple period are in evidence but the remains which are now visible are from the Crusader, Mamluk, and Ottoman times. Aiding those involved in the restoration process are documents covering two periods of history. The bishop of Marseilles, Benova D’Avigone gave a detailed description of fortifications systems as they were in the mid 13th century CE. Shams A-Din al Otmani provides similar information relating to the additions created by the Mamluks in the latter half of the century.

    Massive Earthquake

    Based on this detailed evidence, scholars believe the fortress comprised an area of some 40 dunams, and included two defensive rings. The fortress itself was encircled by seven defensive towers, with two more towers having been added after the Mamluk victory over the Crusaders. After a massive earthquake struck the city in 1837, the citadel no longer served any useful function and was plundered by locals for building materials needed to restore earthquake-damaged homes.

    Today

    Thanks to the restoration project, completed in 2014, visitors can enjoy walking along the trails that wind around the citadel park. There are public bathrooms and a playground at the summit of the citadel, as well as unique foliage and beautiful views of the Kinneret to the east and Mt. Meron to the west.

  • Safed in the 19th Century

    One interesting way to look at the history of Safed is to see it through the historic families who lived there. One family, the Abbo Family, traces their family heritage in Safed back five generations. Understanding their family background, and learning more about their time in Safed sheds light on the history of the region.

    The Bnei Israel Affair in SafedSafed in the 19th Century

    The first Rabbi in the Abbo line was Rabbi Shmuel Abbo. In 1817, he arrived in Israel from Algeria and settled in Safed. He traveled to India for trade reasons and stayed for several years to help to organize the Jewish community there and to be their rabbi and teacher. At this time, he came into contact with the Bnei Israel community. They wanted him to find a solution that would enable them to be recognized as Jews. When he returned to Israel, he raised this issue with the rabbis of Safed and Jerusalem. He went back to India in 1859 to verify that the Bnei Israel were fulfilling all of the Jewish obligations and religious requirements. In 1869, the rabbis of Safed wrote a ruling that stated that the Bnei Israel were fully halachic Jews. This issue is particularly interesting, since the debate that Rabbi Abbo and his colleagues answered still continues today.

    French Jews

    At the beginning of the 19th century, the Jews in Safed lived very difficult lives. No one was able to defend them from Arab attack. Rabbi Shmuel Abbo requested that the Jews be allowed to defend themselves. When he did not receive an answer, he travelled to Algeria, received the support of the community’s leaders and then received the title of the general consul for the Galilee. This gave him the legal right to defend Safed and Tiveria’s Jews in the name of France.

    Jews as French Subjects

    His first act as the consul was to put the Jews of Safed and Tiveria under the protection of the French government. He did this by officially registering them as French subjects. His house, the Abbo house, was seen as a refuge for all Jews who were harassed and persecuted – and for others who were as well. The Ottoman authorities never entered his house or tried to stop him since he had diplomatic immunity.

    Help During the Earthquake

    Soon thereafter, on January 1, 1837, the largest earthquake to hit Safed was experienced. Virtually the entire town was ruined. Only a few houses, including the Abbo home, were left unharmed. Rabbi Shmuel Abbo immediately got to work to help the people who were left in Safed. Along with the head of the Ashkenazic hassidim, Rabbi of AVritch, he had construction workers come from Damascus to repair all of the buildings. They rebuilt the Ari’ synagogue and helped to make sure that regular life returned to Safed.

  • Historic Families of Safed – The Abbo Family

    One family, the Abbo Family, can trace its lineage back over five successive generations in Safed. Understanding their history, and following their family story is one interesting way to understand and explore the history of Safed.

    Lag B’Omer In SafedOne Safed Family on Lag B'Omer

    Anyone who knows Safed history knows about the Abbo family tradition on Lag B’Omer. The house that they still use today for their celebration was the one that was built at the start of the 19th century in Safed. Generations ago, they started the custom of bringing forth the Abbo family Torah scroll with a great deal of pomp and ceremony. On Lag B’Omer, the Abbo house becomes the center of the festivities in Safed and is a testament to the Abbo family’s resilience in the face of so many years of obstacles.

    The Origins of This Tradition

    A few years after arriving in Israel at the beginning of the 19th century, Rabbi Shmuel Abbo purchased the site of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai’s grave in Meron and then built the synagogue that is still in use there today. He also bought approximately 1800 acres of agricultural land in Meron Village and encouraged Kurdish Jews to settle there. They divided their time between the land and their study of Torah.

    Saying Thanks

    Their presence in Safed, and their desire to work the land, predated the Zionist pioneering spirit and settlements by quite a bit. Their activity and their commitment was quite a surprise to the local Arabs. The Safed community gave Rabbi Abbo a Torah scroll with his name in order to honor him on the eve of Lag B’Omer in 1833. They carried the scroll from the Abbo home in Safed to the Bar Yochai synagogue in Meron, thus beginning a tradition that is still performed each year on Lag B’Omer.

    A New Scroll

    Soon after this tradition began, the original scroll was replaced with a scroll decorated in silver and gold and donated by the rabbi and consul Yitzhak Mordechai. This is the scroll that is still paraded on Lag B’Omer to this day! For five generations, this family has been preserving the tradition and passing the Torah from father to son on Lag B’Omer.

    Lag B’Omer is certainly an interesting time to be in Safed, and an amazing time to witness the Abbo family in action. If ever there is a time to see a Jewish tradition grounded in the land of Israel and in the city of Safed, it is the Abbo family on Lag B’Omer!

  • Rabbi Luria’s Influence

    One of the most influential thinkers of the 16th century in Safed was Rabbi Isaac Ben Solomon Luria. His understanding of Jewish mysticism, and the knowledge that he imparted to his disciples are the entire basis of the Lurianic Kabbalah that many people follow today and that influences many modern day Kabbalistic traditions. He was called “The Ari” by his followers, which stood for, “The Holy Lion.”

    Rabbi Luria’s Beginnings Rabbi Luria, The Ari

    Luria was born in Jerusalem in 1534 to German parents. His father died while he was still young, and he was raised by his mother. Luria studied for awhile in Egypt, learning Jewish law and rabbinic literature and he earned a living through commerce. At 15, he married his cousin and eventually moved to a secluded island on the Nile that was owned by his father-in-law. He concentrated intensely for 13 years on his study of the Zohar and the works of earlier Kabbalists. He barely left the island, and spoke to his wife in Hebrew, when he spoke.

    Luria Moves to Safed

    In 1569, he moved to Safed where he studied Kabbalah with Rabbi Cordovero until Rabbi Cordovero died in 1570. Luria gained fame, first, as a mystical poet. Later, he started teaching Kabbalah and was friendly with many other scholars in Safed. He created a group of Kabbalists who would meet on Fridays to confess their sins to each other. He taught students orally and never wrote down his teachings. He had many innovative ideas about creation and about other metaphysical concepts.

    Luria’s Many Teachings

    The Ari revealed many remarkable findings from Kabbalah. He explained that the spiritual energy of the Messiah would express itself in our physical world in the year 1948 on a Friday. Over 500 years later, the state of Israel was born in 1948, and the statehood was ratified by the U.N. on a Friday. His greatest legacy was The Writings of the Ari, which was compiled by his most loyal student, Rabbi Hayyim Vital. This work game birth to what is today known as Lurianic Kabbalah.

    Rabbi Luria’s Legacy

    Luria died at only 38, in an epidemic in the summer of 1572, and he was buried in Safed. It is amazing to see what he was able to accomplish in such a short lifetime. Books on his work and his understanding of the Kabbalah include: Ez Hayyim, Shulhan Aruch Shel R. Yizhak Luria, Orhot Zaddikim and Patora de Abba, and he is still, to this day, regarded as one of the greatest Kabbalistic thinkers of all time.

  • Rabbi Berab (Beirav) and His Legacy

    Rabbi Jacob Berab (also known as Rabbi Jacob Beirav) was one of the major Torah leaders and Rabbis in Safed during the 16th Century. Learning more about him can help to shed light on the history of Safed and on the people who helped to make Safed what it is today.

    Rabbi Jacob Berab’s History Rabbi Jacob Berab (Beirav)

    Rabbi Berab was born in 1474 in Spain. His family name was actually Marmaran, and Berab was a name that was added as an honorary title as a Torah scholar. He was born in Moceda, near Toledo about 18 years before the Expulsion of the Jews from Spain. After being driven from Spain, Rabbi Jacob wandered for many years before finally settling in Safed. He traveled through Algeria and became the Rabbi of Fez for awhile. From there, he went to Cairo, Egypt where he learned with many important Torah scholars. Eventually, he made his way to Jerusalem, but then butted heads there with Rabbi Levi Ibn Habib, and moved to Damascus. He was appointed in Damascus as the Rabbi and Head of Court and became very wealthy in business.

    Rabbi Jacob Beirav in Safed

    Eventually, Rabbi Jacob made his way back to Eretz Yisrael and settled in Safed. At the time, Safed was the largest and most important community for Jews at the time, with 1000 Jewish families and many Rabbis and mystical leaders. Rabbi Jacob became the Chief Rabbi over all of the Rabbis and scholars of Safed and he taught Torah and Kabbalah. Some of his students included Rabbi Joseph Karo and Rabbi Moshe de Trani.

    Semicha as Rabbi Jacob’s Idea

    During this period, Rabbi Jacob had the idea to renew the “Semicha” so that they could set up a Sanhedrin or Supreme Rabbinic Court. He wanted to bring the time of the Messiah closer, and he thought that he would do so with this task. He also hoped that this move would help to strengthen the Jewish people during these difficult times. Semicha was a method whereby one could become ordained with the power to be part of the Court. From as far back as Moshe Rabbenu, Jews had this idea that the authority of Semicha was given to the greatest Torah scholars of each generation. This tradition continued until the great Torah Academies in Eretz Yisrael were dissolved. Rabbi Jacob Berab wanted to renew this ancient tradition of the “Semichas Zekainim” (Semicha of Elders).

    Semicha Given

    During this time, in 1538, 25 Rabbis and Mystics assembled in Safed and gave “Semicha” to Rabbi Jacob Berab. Rabbi Jacob then gave “Semicha” to a few important Torah scholars including Rabbi Joseph Karo, Rabbi Moshe of Cordevera and others. Unfortunately, his idea to renew the Semicha process was frowned upon and rejected by Rabbi Levi Ibn Habib in Jerusalem. This started a very large dispute between supporters and detractors of the Semicha idea that only ended when Rabbi Jacob Berab died and the Semicha came to an end.

    At the End

    Rabbi Jacob actually had to flee Safed for awhile when this heated debate broke out. He returned, however, and died in Safed in 1541. In his life, he wrote the Responsa “Mahari Berab” and many other responsa. He also wrote a commentary on the Rambam and many other works. He is regarded as one of the greatest Torah scholars of his time and was integral to the history of Safed and to its Jewish development.