Sar'a

Sar'a ( ), was a Palestinian Arab village located 25 km west of Jerusalem . The Canaanites referred to Sar'a by the name of Sur'a or Zorah , subsequently it was known by Danite, then the Romans called it Sarea. Sar'a had two shrines, one of which is still standing. The first belongs to al-Nabi Samat, and the other for an unknown individual. The village also has several khirbas including Khirbat al-Tahuna, where the ruins of a building constructed of ashlars (squared stone masonry) and the foundations of other buildings. Sar'a was captured by Israel 's Harel Brigade between July 13–14, 1948 during the offensive Operation Dani in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War . Many of the inhabitants had already fled as the village had been on the front lines since April. Those who had remained fled when the mortar barrages from the approaching Harel columns began; the few that stayed throughout the assault were later expelled. The village's inhabitants fled the village towards various West Bank refugee camps, including Qalandiya . The Israeli localities of Tarum and Tzora were established on the former village's lands. According to the Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi, the village remaining structures on the village land are: Stone rubble and iron girders are strewn among the trees on the site. A flat stone, surrounded by debris and inscribed with Arabic verses from the Qur'an , bears the date A.H. 1355 (1936). On the western edge of the site stands a shrine containing the tombs of two local religious teachers. A valley to the northeast is covered with fig , almond, and cypress trees.¹