KAFR BIR‛IM – SAFAD DISTRICT
33°2′35″N / 35°24′50″E
1948: Population 824; Houses 196
Occupation date: November 4, 1948
Occupying forces: 72nd and 79th Battalions of the Seventh
Brigade
Occupying operation: Operation Ḥiram
Post 1948: In 1949, after the deportation of the last inhabitants of Kafr Bir‛im, Kibbutz Bar‛am (lit., “Son of the People”) was established in the village, using the former houses, by former members of the Palmach. In August 1950 the kibbutz moved to its current location 2 kilometers away. Between 1949 and 1953, natural erosion, settlers, and the Israeli military gradually demolished the village. On September 16–17, 1953, using fighter-bombers and sappers, the Israeli military leveled Kafr Bir‛im.11 In 1963 Moshav Dovev was established by immigrants from Iran and Morocco on village land.
Today: The site lies within the Bar‛am National Park. The only complete remaining structure is the church and its belfry. On a path behind the church, gutted and overgrown portions of former houses can be seen. For decades after the village’s depopulation, the refugees of Kafr Bir‛im have pleaded to be permitted to return to their homes, to no avail.
Official Israeli name: None. The National Park is called Bar‛am, the ancient name of the place. The former village of Kafr Bir‛im does not appear on contemporary maps of Israel.