"El-Nabi Rubin", ʿĀdel az-Zawaty, a Paper Clipping

Handwritten in Arabic, this paper clipping documents the name of "el-Nabi Rubin", a village on the southern bank of Rubin River and three kilometres from the Mediterranean Sea, with the largest deserts in al-Ramleh, after the village of Yibna, affiliated with the Islamic Waqf. With scattered houses, housing mostly Muslim residents descending from the Malha Bedouins known as the Clan of Abu Ṣwaireh, the village also stands witness to the establishment of shops, a cinema, and a primary school for boys (in 1946) housing 56 students. In addition to the Nabi Rubin Lighthouse (Iamnitarum Portus in Roman Times) located to the far southwest of the village, at the remains of the Yibna Harbour. Recent excavations also unearthed a square 800-metres wide earthen wall dating back to the 2nd millennium BC. Back in the day, the village had wells and springs providing drinking water to its residents who worked in raising livestock and planting grains, citrus fruit, and fruits like figs and grapes divided as follows, 683 dunums for citrus and banans, 4357 dunums for grains, and 184 dunums for miscellaneous plants, as well as Eucalyptus and Melia trees sprouting by the riverbank. As for social life, the village was of great importance to Palestinians for having had the shrine for al-Nabi Rubin, which gave the village greater religious importance, once that is annually celebrated from July to September, which was the greatest celebrations of the two prophets, Rubin and Moses. During said celebrations, people from Jaffa, Lod, al-Ramleh, and neighbouring villages would travel to sing Islamic and traditional songs, dance the Dabkeh, practice Dua, attend horse racing and magic performances, and rejoice before preachers and poetry reciters. During their stay, travellers are housed in tents erected around the shrine where they are served drinks and food, and where they can exchange goods at a market established merely for such occasion. Last and foremost, the village was occupied in 1948, and it is said that back in 1939, Asʿad ar-Rantisy and his comrades had fought in the village the Battle of al-Nabi Rubin.