Going back to the 1930s, this photo shows Palestinians shopping at a temporary vegetable market in Romema, northwest Jerusalem, a decade or so before it was ethnically cleansed of its Palestinian residents.
Founded in 1921, Romema was established as a Jewish neighborhood, located on a hill between the Palestinian villages of Lifta to the north and Sheikh Bader to the south. Soon after, it became mixed Arab–Jewish. Its location was very strategic, because it was located at the main entrance to Jerusalem, right on the only road to Tel Aviv at that time.
In late 1947, the Haganah commander in Jerusalem decided to drive Palestinians out of mixed neighborhoods, including Romema, which was a top priority due to its strategic location.1
A series of Haganah and Irgun attacks started in December 1947. These attacks included psychological warfare as well as violent attacks and severance of key utilities such as phone lines.2 Israeli settlements were built to house the Jews who replaced them.
Today, Romema is a densely populated, Jewish, largely haredi neighborhood, characterized by modern residential buildings, commercial areas, and heavy traffic. It became the transportation hub of the city, sitting just off the Tel Aviv–Jerusalem Highway at the city’s main entrance and housing its central bus station.