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Palestine Atlas

Acre

Basic Information

Type
City
Governorate
Northern District (Israel)
Region
Israel - Galilee

Overview

Acre (Akko in Hebrew, Akka in Arabic) is one of the oldest continuously inhabited port cities in the world, with a history stretching back over 4,000 years. Before 1948, it was a Palestinian city of approximately 13,000 residents, a historic port town where Palestinians lived within the well-preserved walls of the Ottoman Old City and in newer neighborhoods outside. During the 1948 Nakba, Acre was besieged and bombarded; approximately 75% of its Palestinian population — about 10,000 people — was expelled by land and sea, primarily to Lebanon and Syria. By 1949, only about 3,000 Palestinians remained. The survivors were concentrated in the Old City and placed under military rule until 1966. After 1948, Israel systematically neglected the Old City's Palestinian neighborhoods while developing Jewish tourist infrastructure. Today, Acre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but its Palestinian residents face severe housing discrimination, lack of building permits, and ongoing attempts to Judaize the Old City through evictions and property transfers. The city's magnificent Ottoman architecture — including the al-Jazzar Mosque, the Khan al-Shuna, and the Turkish bath — draws tourists who rarely learn about the Palestinian community whose homes and businesses were seized.

Historical Significance

One of the oldest continuously inhabited ports in the world; capital of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem; major Ottoman provincial capital; best-preserved Ottoman walled city in the region; UNESCO World Heritage Site; site of 1948 ethnic cleansing.

Sources and record limitations

Source detail varies by record. Some entries include document and page references; others supply source names only. Check the cited material and the record's limitations before relying on a specific claim.

Acre's Old City is among the best-preserved Ottoman cities in the world, yet its Palestinian residents face ongoing displacement. Contemporary chronology evidence: an Acre police report dated 16 June 1951, page 1 under Old Acre, records an assembly on 1 June 1951 at which Tawfik Toubi spoke about abolition of military administration in Acre. This is a contemporary account, not a signed revocation order establishing the exact legal effective date. The inherited 1958 timeline date remains unverified.