The City of Hebron / Photogallery / Diashow

Hebron, the city of the friend of the Most Gracious, is considered an Islamic, cultural milestone deep-rooted in the Arab and Islamic history.  This city has boomed for over six thousand years as evidenced by excavations and stone inscriptions.

As the visitor walks around it, he/she delights in the scent of its faith, the hospitality of its inhabitants and the shade of its vineyard.

It is the city of civilization and history, the paradise of springs and orchards, and the sanctuary of religion, science and scholars.  Allah has honored this city and its inhabitants by making it a mausoleum of prophets, holy and pious men.  It houses the mausoleums of our master Ibrahim Al-Khalil (Peace be upon him) and his sons Jacob, Isaac, Joseph and their wives, as narrated by historical records.

The city, be it as it may, stands out clearly through its Arab and Islamic nature.  All the historical accounts have proven that the Arab history of the city goes back to about 4,000 years, when it was inhabited by Canaanite Arabs.  Historical documents also emphasize that the “Araba’ [Four] village is traced back to its builder “Araba’”, who was a Canaanite Arab and master of “Al-Anaqiyyin”, who lived in that area as Canaanite Arabs.

History tells us that our master Ibrahim (Peace be upon him) visited Egypt after his exodus from Caldanian “Ur” in southern Iraq.  He then travelled to Palestine and afterwards to Egypt again.  Then, he toured Hijaz (region in West Arabia) and finally settled down with his wife under an oak tree that is still standing in Hebron, known today as “the oak tree of our master Ibrahim Al-Khalil (Peace be upon him).

Location of the City
Hebron lies within a triple-aged, curved plateau that was exposed to natural erosion which transformed it into a group of mountainous crests with a number of valleys gliding between them.  The city came into existence in one of these valleys.  It spread gradually at the versant of the mountains that rose above the above-mentioned valleys.  The name of the valley changes along its direction.  At its starting point, it is called “Canal Valley”, then “Sabta Valley”, then “At-tufah Valley” which passes through the Hebron city centre where are located the central markets and the old city.  Then, the valley is called “Sabya Valley”, then “Al-Qadi Valley”, then Hebron Valley, which arrives eventually at the Mediterranean Sea.

Owing to the climatic conditions of Hebron and the dominant rocks, the thin rosy Mediterranean soil (terra rosa) was formed and was protected by the inhabitants from being swept away through what are called Terraces.  This was accompanied by the spread of a light plant cover that was the remain of the recessive Mediterranean forest and other weeds.

As a consequence of all this, the Hebron conditions and locality helped in populating the area with villages and other inhabitant concentrations.  Among these stands out the city of Hebron, distinguished by its location, significance and role.  Its environs have prospered and expanded and it has become the capital of the south.

Remains of the man of ancient, middle and modern stone ages have been found in Hebron.  The Canaanite Arabs dwelled in the region at the beginning of historical ages, populated it and built the “Araba’” village (Hebron).  Excavations have proven that the history of the city can be traced back to earlier than the year 3,500 B.C.

In the year 1805 B.C. Ibrahim Al-Khalil dwelled in it.  It then became an abode and a burial-ground for him and for his family after his death: Isaac, Jacob and Joseph.

The region was inhabited by the powerful, long Anaqian Arabs.  When Joshua son of Nun came to the city, he changed the name of Araba’ village to “Hebron”.  Hebron then became a base for David, son of Solomon, for only seven and a half years.  Around 500 B.C., Hebron became the most famous city for the Idomians who took refuge in southern Palestine, fleeing from the Nabateans.  Most probably, the Roman Herod was the one who built the great wall surrounding Ibrahim cemetery.  During the time of Jesus Christ (Peace be upon him), some houses were built around the cemetery wall, which soon became a village known as “house of Ibrahim”.

It seems that the position of Hebron declined during the Roman era and the early period of Islam.  History tells us that the city was destroyed by wars and earthquakes several times throughout its long history.  Ibrahim’s sanctuary was renovated during the Umayyad period and became a mosque.  It was improved a lot during the Abbasid period.  The Crusaders occupied Hebron, made it a parish centre in 1168 and built a church in the mosque location.  When Saladin regained it, he built the mosque and brought to it the ivory Asheklon pulpit.

During the Mamluk period, there was more construction in the mosque and its annexes.  Its endowments increased.  Hebron recovered its construction boom.  The Mamluks built a pond, a dike and a drinking fountain, and brought water for them.  They built a school and a lunatic asylum and provided expressions of splendor for the holy places.  During their days, Hebron became one of the mail centers between Egypt and Shoubak (in Jordan) and the station for carrier pigeon mail between Egypt and Karak (in Jordan).

At the beginning of the tenth Hijrite century (around 1486 A.D.), Hebron was described by Mujir Ed-din Al-Hanbali as being circular in shape, surrounding the mosque from the four sides.  Its buildings were of stone, similar to those of Bayt Al-maqdis (Jerusalem) and the rooftops were vaulted.  No adobe was used in their construction nor wood in their rooftops.  Houses were distinguished by being narrow, with elevated rooftops and crowded complexes that were separated only by narrow alleyways.

Exterior walls were connected and formed a fence-like that surrounded the quarter.  The most well-known quarters are:  Sheikh Ali AL-Bakaa’ quarter in the north, Qaytoun quarter in the western south, Al-Akrad (Kurds) quarter between Sheikh Bakka’ quarter and the Mosque, As-Sawakneh quarter, named after one of the virtuous women named “Sukayah”.  These quarters are still there today.  Other quarters are:  Al-Habarneh (known today as Al-‘Uqqabeh), Al-Masharqah, to the east of the Mosque, divided into two sections:  Upper Masharqah and lower Masharqah.  There is also Ad-dayryeh quarter, to the west of the Mosque, which included the city markets and sanitary facilities.  Al-Hanbali also mentioned the following places in Hebron:  small mosques, place where cavalrymen tied up horses, schools, wellsprings, cemeteries, lunatic asylum, “tombstone of the forty”, and dome of the ascetic.  During the Ottoman period, Hebron maintained the prosperity it enjoyed during the period of the Mamluks.

In fact, its plantations, forests and industries became more well-known, e.g. industries of soap, glass, cotton and wool spinning.  Hebron became a station for caravans going to Egypt and Aqaba.

Hebron underwent a real demographic revolution immediately after the catastrophe that befell Palestine in 1948 and owing to the arrival of a large number of refugees and the expansion of the administrative and services cadres.  This created the opportunity for new jobs, which attracted to it residents of the countryside and refugee camps.  The result was increase in the number of Hebron inhabitants to 37,868 at the end of 1961, i.e. a 54% increase during 17 years.  This happened despite the great migration of the educated and the technicians.

Since the early days of the Israeli occupation of Hebron, oppression and deception reigned on the inhabitants owing to acts of tyranny and aggression committed against them, especially at the hands of the Jewish settlers who infiltrated into the city under cover of night.

The case was not a political conflict between the city dwellers, on one side, and the settlers and Israeli army, on the other.  Rather, it was a case of deep-rooted cultural and ideological conflict, which was evidently embodied in the Holy Ibrahimi Mosque.  The city dwellers regard this Mosque as being Islamic since time immemorial, whereas Jews claim that this place is a synagogue of theirs.  This has made the matter more complex.  The citizens of the Arab Islamic city of the “Friend of Allah” insist that this city belongs to them and prove this through their continuing praying in the Ibrahimi Mosque despite all the measures and barriers.  They have paid the price out of their sons’ blood that flowed in the prayer niche of Ibrahim (Peace be upon him).

The city is still suffering owing to its occupation by the army and settlers despite the peace negotiations.  We beseech the Almighty to drive away the distress of the city and that of its inhabitants.  Allah has power over all things.