A neighborhood located east of Gaza City and north of Old Gaza Hill. It extends over an area of 2,843 dunums (a dunum is equivalent to a thousand square kilometres). The reason for its name goes back to the period of the Ottoman Empire, when apple trees were widely planted, which distinguished the area with their beautiful flowers and fragrant scent.
Al-Tuffah neighborhood witnessed a long resistance to the waves of occupation, as it was subjected to several attacks by the Israeli occupation forces, most notably in the years 1993, 2004, 2014, and 2024.
Location and area of Al-Tuffah neighborhood
Al-Tuffah neighborhood is located east of Gaza City, north of Old Gaza Hill. Its area is 2,843 dunums, and it is divided into an eastern and western parts, separated by Salah al-Din Street, one of the main streets in the Gaza Strip.
The reason for its name
The neighborhood was given this name due to the large number of apple trees planted in it during the Ottoman period, as they used to enchant the eyes of its visitors with their snow-coloured blossoms and their pleasant smell. In the past, it was called “Apple Trees”, in reference to an inn in which it was located, bearing the same name.
Residents of Al-Tuffah neighborhood
The population of the Al-Tuffah neighborhood as of 2015 was about 37 thousand people, and among the families residing in the neighborhood are the Hussein family, the Marzouk family, the Bustan family, the Rayes family, the Hamada family, the Bakr family, the Shawa family, the Ghazal family, and others.
History of resilience
The ancient ruins found in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood indicate human presence for centuries, from the Mamluk era, through the periods of the Crusades, until World War I.
According to the Institute for Palestine Studies, in 1992, the Israeli occupation authorities adopted a policy of demolishing Palestinian homes, using anti-tank missiles, based on suspicion of the presence of wanted youth there, and reached the point of destroying the entire Al-Tuffah neighborhood in April 1993.
In 2004, the neighborhood was bombed by helicopters of the Israeli occupation army, as part of clashes with the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), in the context of the “Days of Rage” battle.
The clashes between the Israeli occupation forces and the Palestinian resistance intensified in 2009 in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood, and violent and indiscriminate artillery shelling was concentrated in the vicinity of the neighborhood and the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood, which led to martyrs and injuries as a result of the Israeli attacks.
In 2014, as part of the “Devouring Storm” war, the Al-Qassam Brigades announced that they had killed 14 soldiers from the Israeli occupation forces in an elaborate, pre-prepared ambush east of the Al-Tuffah neighborhood.
In December 2020, Israeli occupation army aircraft bombed several areas in the Gaza Strip, including the “Al-Wadud Mosque” in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood and some citizens’ homes in the neighborhood.
In 2023, in the context of the “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation launched by the Palestinian resistance on October 7 on the settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip, the Al-Tuffah neighborhood witnessed violent battles between the Al-Qassam Brigades and the Israeli occupation army, in which the brigades targeted the occupation’s vehicles and tanks, and were able to kill dozens of soldiers. Israelis.
At the beginning of 2024, the government media office in Gaza revealed that the Israeli occupation army had exhumed nearly 1,100 graves in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood cemetery, adding that the occupation mechanisms “bulldozed them and removed the bodies of the martyrs and the dead from them.”
In March 2024, trucks loaded with food aid arrived at the warehouses of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood, carrying canned food and food supplies that had not been there since the start of the war.
In April 2024, the Israeli occupation army targeted the neighborhood, marking the site of martyrs and wounded Palestinians, including officers, police officers, and citizens, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Interior.
In June 2024, many residents of the Al-Tuffah neighborhood were martyred as a result of raids launched by the Israeli occupation army on some of the homes of the neighborhood’s citizens, which led to their complete destruction and damage to other nearby homes.
On October 23, 2024, the Israeli occupation army targeted the Al-Tuffah neighborhood, resulting in the deaths of 4 Palestinians and the injury of others.
The most prominent landmarks of Al-Tuffah neighborhood
- English cemetery
The English Cemetery is located in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood. It is the second English cemetery in Palestine in terms of area after the Beersheba Cemetery. It has an area of 40 dunums and was established by the Allied Forces, the British Commonwealth, during the occupation of Palestine in 1917.
The cemetery contains 3,217 graves of infantry commanders, paratroopers and aviation commanders, and soldiers of multiple nationalities, including Australian, New Zealand and Indian, and there is a collective shrine for Indian Muslims and Hindus.
- Ali bin Marwan Mosque
The Ali bin Marwan Mosque dates back to the Mamluk era. It extends over an area of 320 dunums, and is adjacent to a cemetery named after him that includes historical tombstones.
The mosque was established in 1371 AD, and many renovations and additions were made to it. It was named after Sheikh Ali bin Marwan, the owner of the shrine located under the dome attached to the mosque.
- Maqam Ibn Marwan
The shrine consists of one room located to the southwest of the Ali bin Marwan Mosque. It reaches a height of 5 meters and is surmounted by the dome of the shrine. Inside it is the tomb of Sheikh Ali bin Marwan. He is from Morocco and belongs to the Al-Hasani family. He came to Gaza at the beginning of the Mamluk era and died in 1314 AD. .
The Al-Tuffah neighborhood is also full of other archaeological landmarks, the most notable of which is the Al-Aybaki Mosque, which contains a marble slab dating back to the year 751 AH. There is also the “Al-Tamirashi” cemetery, and the Al-Mashahara area, located to the north of the neighborhood, a cemetery for Muslim martyrs who were killed in the Crusades.
