Tirat Zvi colony

Tirat Zvi (Tir David) is a kibbutz located in the Beisan (Beit She'an) Valley, established on December 10, 1936, originally under the name Tel Amal. As of 2021, the number of settlers residing there was 743. This settlement was established on the lands of the depopulated Palestinian village of Al-Sakhina, in the District of Baysan. Al-Sakhina was a Bedouin village whose inhabitants belonged to the tribes of Al-Qarut, Al-Muqbil Al-Zubaidi, and Arab Al-Saqr. The village was located northwest of the city of Beisan. Originally a Bedouin encampment of tents, the community was intersected by the main paved road connecting Beisan to Afula. A secondary road, suitable for vehicles, branched off and connected Ain al-Sakhina with the nearby village of Al-Marsas, located to the north of Beisan. Al-Sakhina was located approximately 10 km from Beisan, with a total land area of 6,400 dunams, including 172 dunams allocated to roads and riverbeds. It was surrounded by the lands of Beisan and Tall al-Shawk. The majority of the village’s land was cultivated with vineyards and fruit trees, particularly in the northern and northwestern areas. Date palms were planted in the eastern section, and forests occupied a wide area to the northwest. Vegetable and fruit orchards extended along the left bank of the Jalud River. The population of Al-Sakhina was estimated at 374 in the 1931 census, and 530 in 1945. The village also included archaeological and historical sites, such as ruins, foundations, columns, and paved floors, along with nearby sites like the ruins of Tall Tumas, Tall al-Dhahra al-Kabira, and Tall al-Dhahra al-Saghira.