Sophie and I visit the abandoned Palestinian village of Lifta located at the entrance to the city of Jerusalem. This beautiful village, containing remains dating back as far as the iron age, housed around 3000 residents until they left in the wake of fierce fighting during the 1948 war. Those inhabitants were subsequently refused the right to return to their village, which aside from being used to house Jewish refugees from Yemen and Kurdistan for a time, has largely remained empty.
Currently the village is under threat due to large scale construction projects such as highway building, the setting up of infrastructure for the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv train etc. There is also currently a battle underway between activists/former residents and property developers who want to turn the abandoned village into a luxury neighbourhood.
Sophie and I love this ancient village for it’s beauty, history and tranquility and visit it on a regular basis.
Song credit:
Artist: Turku Nomads of the Silk Road
Track: Bir Demet Yasemen
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