Dimra

The Crusader-era village was located in the southern coastal plain in a location characterized by its reddish-brown soil. A short side road connected it to the coastal highway, and the coastal railway line passed a short distance away to the west. It is located 12 kilometers from Gaza at an average elevation of 50 meters above sea level. In 1945, its population was 520 people, all Muslims. The village’s agricultural lands were exposed to the encroachment of the beach sands, while the village contained antiquities, including the foundations of buildings, a cemetery, columns, and severed column capitals. There were also two archaeological sites on its land containing various types of archaeological remains.

The displacement and ethnic cleansing
On February 16, 1948, a Jewish convoy passed through the village and opened fire on its residents, who returned fire. On May 31, the residents of the village of Huj, which is adjacent to the village of Dimra, were expelled and repeatedly prevented from returning to their village. Dimra was likely occupied and its residents expelled during the final stages of Operation Yoav, carried out by the Israeli army in October-November 1948.

The colonization
In 1949, the colony of Iser was established on part of the village site.

The village today
Most of the site is fenced off and used as a pasture for livestock. Almost nothing remains of the village except a dilapidated stone water basin, the cement rubble of houses, and a demolished wall. More rubble is left among the trees on the site near a Jewish cemetery. Some cacti, which were used as fences in the past, grow in the surrounding lands, in addition to bramble and thorny plants.

Reference: Walid Al-Khalidi, So We Do Not Forget, pp. 542, 543.