al-Sumayriyya

The village of al-Sumayriyya stood on a sandstone hill near the Mediterranean coast. To the south of the village were the ancient aqueducts of Kabri, which passed through Wadi al-Majnuna and Tell al-Zuhur, the latter named for the abundance of wildflowers that covered it. The hill served as a picnic and bathing area for the residents of Acre and neighboring villages. One of the Kabri aqueducts passed by the village on its way to Acre.

Al-Sumayriyya was connected to Acre and Ras al-Naqura by the coastal highway. The name al-Sumayriyya may have originated from “Calasatra”, a Canaanite-era name. It was later possibly named after the Samaritans, a sect that was expelled from the Acre area in the 18th century and resettled in Nablus, where their descendants still live today. During the Crusader period, the village was known as Suseria.

By the late 19th century, al-Sumayriyya was situated in a plain surrounded by olive and fig trees. The population ranged between 200 and 400 residents, all of whom were Muslim. Many homes were built of mudbrick, and the village included a mosque and a school, founded in 1941, which enrolled around 60 students.

Many villagers worked in stone quarries located in or near the village, while the majority were engaged in agriculture, cultivating citrus fruits, vegetables, grains, and sesame. In 1944–1945, approximately 632 dunums were irrigated or used for orchards.

There were also two archaeological sites in the village: one known as Tell al-Mushayrifa, which contained carved stones, mosaic floors, tombs, columns, and stone capitals; and another known as Abu ‘Ulba, which housed an Islamic shrine and various ceramic fragments.

Occupation and Ethnic Cleansing

Al-Sumayriyya was occupied on the morning of May 14, 1948, during Operation Ben-Ami, when the Carmeli Brigade attacked the village from the northeast and the south.

According to Israeli historian Benny Morris, the assault was conducted in a manner that deliberately left the eastern side of the village open to allow residents to flee. After shelling the village, the attacking units advanced, prompting the inhabitants to escape.

However, Palestinian historian ‘Arif al-‘Arif reports that the village fell only after intense fighting, during which all the young men of the village resisted until they ran out of ammunition.

The Haganah history book only notes that troops landed near the village by sea and advanced inland to occupy it.

Eyewitnesses provide somewhat different accounts. About 15 local fighters defended the village. A surprise armored unit attacked from the south. One villager fired warning shots into the air, mistakenly believing the forces were from the Arab Liberation Army—he was shot and killed immediately. Most women and children were evacuated to Acre and neighboring villages.

The remaining men attempted to resist from the northeast before retreating, leaving many casualties. Some villagers later returned to collect the bodies, but only one martyr’s body was recovered from the southern part of the village. According to one returnee, most of the village was already destroyed.

This testimony is corroborated by a photograph published in The New York Times less than two weeks after the occupation. Taken by Associated Press, the photo showed widespread destruction inflicted by Zionist forces. The caption noted that the village had been used by Arabs as a sniper base targeting the coastal highway running north–south.

The Village Today

Today, only one room of the village mosque remains standing, along with parts of a stone building, some collapsed walls, arches from ruined homes, and other structural remnants.

The remaining mosque structure is a square stone building with a flat roof supported by wooden beams. It has a now-sealed arched door. The site is overgrown with wild grasses and trees, and there is a cow shed in the northern part of the village. The surrounding lands are cultivated by residents of Kibbutz Regba.

Zionist Settlements on Village Lands

In June 1948, the Jewish National Fund (JNF) began the complete demolition of al-Sumayriyya after receiving authorization from Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion.

Seven months later, on January 17, 1949, the lands of the village were used for the establishment of the kibbutz Shomrat (grid ref. 11392010), which had already been founded in 1948.

The settlements of Shavei Tzion (grid ref. 198265) and Regba (grid ref. 199264) are located to the north of the village lands, although technically they lie on the lands of the nearby, still-existing village of al-Mazra‘a.

Shavei Tzion was established in 1938 as a fortified outpost with a guard tower and later incorporated into a residential neighborhood named Shkhunat Hof in 1949.

Regba, founded in 1946, is located near the original site of al-Sumayriyya.