 By 1300 , the the Levant was entirely in Mamluk hands and divided into several provinces . Lajjun became the center of a nahiya ( subdistrict ) in the province of Safad , encompassing the villages of al @-@ Ashir , Kawkab al @-@ Hawa , and Jenin . The Mamluks fortified it in the 15th century and the town became a major staging post on the postal route ( braid ) between Egypt and Damascus . 
