Bayt 'Itab
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Bayt 'Itab
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 Bayt 'Itab
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| Arabic | بيت عطاب |
| Name meaning | ""House of Atab" |
| Also spelled | Beit 'Atab, Bait 'Itab |
| Subdistrict | Jerusalem |
| Coordinates | 31°44′06″N 35°03′11″E / 31.73500°N 35.05306°ECoordinates: 31°44′06″N 35°03′11″E / 31.73500°N 35.05306°E |
| Palestine grid | 155/126 |
| Population | 540 (1945) |
| Area | 5,447 dunams |
| Date of depopulation | 21 October 1948 |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault by Yishuv forces |
| Current localities | Nes Harim |
Bayt ʿIṭāb (Arabic: بيت عطاب) was a Palestinian Arab village located in the Jerusalem Subdistrict. The village is believed to have been inhabited since biblical times. An ancient tunnel which led to the village spring is associated with story of Samson. Prior to, during, and after its incorporation into Crusader fiefdoms in the 12th century, its population was Arab. Sheikhs from the Lahham family clan, who were associated with the Qays tribo-political faction, ruled the village during Ottoman era. In the 19th century, this clan controlled 24 villages in the vicinity. The homes were built of stone. The local farmers cultivated cereals, fruit trees and olive groves and some engaged in livestock breeding.
After a military assault on Bayt ʿIṭāb by Israeli forces in October 1948, the village was depopulated and demolished. Many of the villagers had fled to refugee camps in the West Bank less than 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the village. In 1950, an Israeli moshav, Nes Harim, was established north of the built up portion of Bayt 'Itab, on an adjacent peak.
Bayt ʿIṭāb is identified with Enadab, a name that appears in a list of Palestinian towns compiled by Eusebius in the fourth century CE.
In the mid-12th century, Bayt ʿIṭāb hosted an impressive maison forte, or hall house, in the ancient centre of the modern village, that is thought to have served as the residence of Johannes Gothman, a Frankish crusader knight. The building had two stories, both vaulted; the ground floor entrance was protected by a slit-machicolation and had stairs leading to the basement and upper floor.
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