Between the Yarkon and Jericho: The Imaginary Line That Reshaped the Middle East

Nir Topper
26 minutes ago
4 min read

Place names (Toponymy) often tell a story far deeper than what meets the eye. The term "Auja" (العوجا) recurs at several strategic locations across the region, representing much more than just the name of a stream. Its origin lies in the Arabic root ‘-w-j (عوج), meaning to deviate from a straight line or to twist. In Arabic, "Al-Auja" is a phenomenological description of water behavior: a stream whose course is not straight, but characterized by wide meanders—a natural mechanism that slows the flow of water across moderate terrain. Interestingly, in 1912, Itamar Ben-Avi (the first native speaker of modern Hebrew) attempted to rename the Yarkon River "HaUga," creating a portmanteau between the Arabic sound and the Hebrew root ‘-w-g (as in the phrase "drawing a circle" or "cake").

In the Land of Israel, there are three primary "Aujas," each of which has shaped local history:

The Western Auja: The lush Yarkon River on the coastal plain, which served as a natural barrier and defensive line throughout the generations.

The Eastern Auja: Wadi Auja (Yitav Stream), which descends from the Benjamin Mountains to create a green oasis in the heart of the Jordan Valley.

The Southern Auja: Auja al-Hafir (Nitzana), a strategic crossroads in the Western Negev, where the "twist" of the wadi meets the "Hafir"—sophisticated water engineering designed to collect flashflood waters in the desert.

The migration of these names across the country testifies to the immense importance of this hydrological phenomenon to the local population.

The "Line of the Two Aujas"

A fascinating key concept in the military history of the land is "The Line of the Two Aujas." During World War I, between December 1917 and September 1918, the front line bisected the country along an imaginary line stretching from the mouth of the Yarkon (the Western Auja) to Wadi Auja (the Eastern Auja).

During the Sinai and Palestine Campaign, there was a period of tactical stalemate and equilibrium between British and Ottoman forces from April to October 1917. During this time, neither side could break through the opponent's defensive lines—a situation often described as a static "deadlock" similar to the trenches of the European fronts. This line was not merely a military border; it was a complex engineering and logistical project involving railways and supply lines, which eventually facilitated the preparations for the decisive Battle of Megiddo and the collapse of the Turkish front.

Treasures of the Desert

The Southern Auja, Nitzana, hides treasures dating back thousands of years—from a Nabataean station on the Incense Route to a thriving Byzantine city named Nessana. One of the most significant discoveries at the site is the "Nessana Papyri" from the 6th and 7th centuries. These documents provide a rare glimpse into daily life on the desert frontier, revealing taxation systems, how the community maintained its Christian character under early Muslim rule, and how the residents harnessed the dynamics of the winding wadi to sustain a city in the heart of the arid wilderness.

The Breakthrough: The Battle of Megiddo

The tense status quo along the "Line of the Two Aujas" came to an end in September 1918 in a brilliant military operation known as the Battle of Megiddo. The decisive breakthrough was not achieved through a grinding frontal assault, but via a masterclass in strategic deception planned by General Edmund Allenby.

Allenby led the Ottomans to believe that the main offensive would be launched from the east, in the area of Wadi Auja (the Eastern Auja), by establishing dummy camps and marching battalions openly in the Jordan Valley. While the Turks concentrated their reserves in the east to block what appeared to be a breakthrough toward Jericho, Allenby secretly amassed a critical mass of forces on the coastal plain, concealed under the dense citrus groves of the Western Auja (the Yarkon).

On the morning of September 19, the great breakthrough began, permanently collapsing the Ottoman defensive line. After a brief but concentrated artillery bombardment, British infantry breached the Turkish lines in the Sharon plain within hours. The rupture at the Western Auja cleared the path for cavalry divisions to gallop north at breathtaking speed through the Carmel mountain passes into the Jezreel Valley, effectively encircling the Ottoman army from the rear. This rapid collapse led to a chaotic Turkish retreat and the total defeat of the Empire in Palestine, ending four hundred years of Ottoman rule and changing the face of the Middle East forever.

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Conclusion

The "Aujas" of Israel are far more than mere bends in a stream; they are anchors of identity, strategy, and survival. Whether through the flour mills of the Yarkon, the aqueducts of Jericho, or the water cisterns of Nitzana, humanity has always known how to harness the power of winding waters for progress and resilience. The next time you hike through one of these sites, remember that you are treading a path where history and geography meet at every turn of the river.

תמונה 1 - נחל ייט"ב 1919. מקור: ויקיפדיה, נחל ייט"ב