Statistic/Fact	Value
Israeli occupation date	June 11, 1948
Distance from district center	10.5 (km) East of Acre
Elevation from the sea	60 (meters)
Map location	See location number #23 on the map
Israeli military operation	Operation Dekel
Defenders	Local militia & Arab Liberation Army
Exodus Cause	Military assault by Jewish troops
Village remains after destruction by Israelis	al-Birwa was mostly destroyed with the exception of three houses, two shrines, and one of the village schools remain standing.
Ethnically cleansing by Israelis	al-Birwa inhabitants were completely ethnically cleansed.
Land ownership before occupation	Ethnic Group Land Ownership (Dunums) Arab 12,939 Jewish 546 Public 57 Total 13,542
Land usage in 1945	Land Usage Type Arab (Dunum) Jewish (Dunum) Irrigated & Plantation 1,548 16 Area planted w/ olives 1,200 0 Planted W/ Cereal 8,457 431 Built up 59 0 Cultivable 10,005 447 Non-Cultivable 2,932 99
Population before occupation	Year Population 1596 121 19th century 900 1922 807 1931 996 1945 1,460 1948 1,694 Est. Refugees 1998 10,401
Number of houses	Year Number of houses 1931 224 1948 380
Town's name through history	The Crusades referred to al-Birwa by Broet.
Schools	al-Birwa had two schools: the 1st school was an elementary school for boys founded by the Ottomans in 1888, and the 2nd was for girls which was founded in 1943 (one of the schools remains standing, but it requires serious renovations guys. Any volunteers!)
Notable people from town	The famous Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish, who currently resides in Ramallah, occupied West Bank.
Religious institutions	One mosque and one church.
Shrines/maqams	Two shrines for local sages , and both shrines remain standing to this date.
Archeological sites	Khirbat Tall Bir al-Gharbi to the west contains artifacts dating from 2300 to 900 B.C.
Exculsive jewish colonies on town's lands	Kibbutz Yas'ur and Achihud.
Related Maps	خرائط تفصيلية للمحافظة View from satellite Help us map this town at WikiMapia
More Information	Language External Links Arabic PalGates Hebrew Nakba in Hebrew   Nakba-Online

Bibliography and References

Town Today

According to the Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi, the village remaining structures on the village land are:
"Three houses, two shrines, and a school remain. One of these shrines is made of stone and has a dome with a shallow curvature that spans the entire roof. The school's architecture is similar to that of Qula (see Quia, al-Ramla District). All of these landmarks stand deserted amid cactuses, weeds, and fig, olive, and mulberry trees. The debris of destroyed houses punctuates the vegetation. There are also some graves near the site that are in a state of neglect. Part of the site and the land are farmed by the residents of Achihud."