Al-Tira الطيرة | |
|---|---|
Village | |
| Etymology: "The Fort of Abu Amran"[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Al-Tira, Baysan (click the buttons) | |
  Al-Tira Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:32°38′52″N35°27′26″E / 32.64778°N 35.45722°E /32.64778; 35.45722 | |
| Palestine grid | 193/228 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Baysan |
| Date of depopulation | 15 April 1948[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 10,207dunams (10.207 km2; 3.941 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 150[2][3] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Whispering campaign |
| Current Localities | Gazit[5][6] |
Al-Tira (Arabic:الطيرة), was aPalestinianArab village in theDistrict of Baysan. It was depopulated by theIsrael Defense Forces during the1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on 15 April 1948 as part ofOperation Gideon under the command ofYosef Weitz. It was located 17.5 km north ofBaysan overlooking Wadi al-Bira. However, 'Ayn al-Bayda' was the main source of drinking water for al-Tira inhabitants.
It has been suggested that this was Atara of the list ofThothmes III.[7][8]
In 1517 al-Tra was incorporated into theOttoman Empire with the rest of Palestine. During the16th and17th centuries, it belonged to theTurabay Emirate (1517-1683), which encompassed also theJezreel Valley,Haifa,Jenin,Beit She'an Valley, northernJabal Nablus,Bilad al-Ruha/Ramot Menashe, and the northern part of theSharon plain.[9][10]
In 1875,Victor Guérin climbed a small hill to reach the Al-Tira village. It consisted of about a dozen houses, built ofadobe or assorted materials.[11]In 1882, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine described it as: "A small village, principally of adobe, on a hill-top, above a deep gorge. The water appears to be brought from the springs in the valley."[8]
In the1922 census of Palestine, conducted by theMandatory Palestine authorities, Tireh had a population of 130 Muslims,[12] decreasing in the1931 census to 108, still all Muslims, in 24 houses.[13]
In the1945 statistics the population of Et Tira andIrgun Borokhov was 200; 150 Arabs and 50 Jews, while the total land area was 10,207dunams, according to an official land and population survey.[2][3] Of this, Arabs used 54 dunums for plantations and irrigable land, 4,326 for cereals,[14] while 29 dunums were classified as built-up (urban) land.[15]
In his diary,Weitz wrote of the inhabitants ofQumya and Al-Tira in the Baysan valley on the 26 March 1948:
"Not taking upon themselves the responsibility of preventing the infiltration of irregulars ... They must be forced to leave their villages until peace comes.[16]
In order to block the return of the villagers,[17] the kibbutzGazit was established on the land of village land in September 1948, 1.5 km southwest of the village site.[5][6]
In 1992 the village site was described: "The ruins of stone houses, covered with grass and thorns, are all that remain of al-Tira. The site is fenced in and servers Israeli farmers as pasture land. Cupress trees grow on surrounding land."[18]
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