Farwana
March 2, 2024
al-Ghazzawiyya
March 2, 2024The village of Al-Fatur was situated on a flat plain that gradually sloped westward and overlooked wide expanses of land to the east, in the Jordan Valley (Ghor al-Urdun). It was flanked by two hills: one to the north, known as Tall Sheikh al-Fatur, which contained a well reinforced with ancient materials, and another to the south, called Tall Sheikh al-Radgha.
A dirt road connected the village to the main Baysan–Jericho road, which passed nearby to the west. The villagers relied on agriculture, particularly the cultivation of annual crops such as cereals and vegetables. In the agricultural year 1944/1945, a total of 709 dunums was allocated to cereal production.
Occupation and Depopulation
It is likely that the residents of Al-Fatur were expelled in mid-February 1948, during fighting between Zionist forces and the Arab Liberation Army near the nearby Jewish settlement of Tirat Zvi. It is also possible that the villagers remained for up to three additional months, until the beginning of Operation Gideon.
Reports indicate that the neighboring village of al-Zarqaa was evacuated on 20 May 1948, although it is unclear whether it was subjected to a direct attack or whether its residents fled due to the mass displacement from nearby villages. Al-Fatur was located near the armistice lines that were later established following the 1948 war.
The Village Today
The village is ruined, and the surrounding lands are now cultivated by residents of the Tirat Zvi settlement, primarily for growing wheat. The ruins of Tall Sheikh al-Fatur are now overgrown with thorn bushes and doum palm trees, while the spring of al-Fatur (ʿAyn al-Fatur) lies directly north of the ruins.
Zionist Settlements on Village LandsThere are no Israeli settlements established directly on the village lands. The closest settlement is Tirat Zvi (Settlement ID: 199203), founded in 1937, located approximately five kilometers southwest of the village site. However, its residents cultivate some of the agricultural lands that once belonged to Al-Fatur.
