 According to Western travelers it was "a small and insignificant village".The primary factors that contributed to the decline were the Bedouin raids on Bayt Jibrin's countryside villages, the 'Azza revolt, tribal warfare among the inhabitants of the towns and villages throughout Palestine and epidemics which struck the town and the nearby area.In 1896 the population of "Bet dschibrin" was estimated to be about 1,278 persons.