Migdal Afek

Migdal Afek (Hebrew: מגדל אפק‎), also Migdal Tsedek (Hebrew: מגדל צדק‎), is a national park on the southeastern edge of Rosh HaAyin, Israel.

Migdal Afek, 2011
Migdal Tsedek
Greek inscription over doorway

History

Located in Migdal Afek are the ruins of Mirabel, a Crusader castle, built on the site of ancient Migdal Afek. It was described in Muslim sources in 1225 as a village called with a fortress called Majdal Yaba.[1] In the 17th century, the village was taken over by the Rayyān family who arrived from Transjordan and built a two-story manor house.[1] The ruins of the manor house, among which remains of the Crusader castle can be seen, are today called Migdal Afek or Migdal Tsedek.[1]

The village was depopulated by the IDF in July 1948.[2][3]

Migdal Tsedek means "Tower of Sadek" in Hebrew, referring to the name of its Sheikh Sadek Al Rayyan.

A lintel over an entrance that was used by the local sheikh as a stable and fodder storage room bears the Greek inscription "Martyr Memorial Church of the Holy Herald."[4]

During World War I, Migdal Afek was the site of battles between the Axis army (forces of the Ottoman, German and Austro-Hungarian empires) and the Egyptian Expeditionary Force.[5]

See also

References
  1. Tsvika Tsuk, Iosi Bordowicz and Itamar Taxel (2016). "Majdal Yābā: The History and Material Culture of a Fortified Village in Late Ottoman- and British Mandate-Palestine". Journal of Islamic Archaeology. 3 (1).
  2. Benny Morris (2004). The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisted. Cambridge University Press. p. xvi.
  3. Sela, Rona. "Scouting Palestinian Territory, 1940-1948: Haganah Village Files, Aerial Photos, and Surveys" (PDF). Institute for Palestine Studies. Institute for Palestine Studies.
  4. Byeways in Palestine, James Finn
  5. Evidence of the World War I Battlefield was Exposed in Rosh Ha-Ayin, Israel Antiquities Authority

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