on 18 july 1948, two days after nazareth was occupied by israel's seventh armored brigade in operation dekel, some units advanced into the western galilee and captured a number of arab villages, one of which was al-ruways. the inhabitants fled after bombardment and the fall of major towns in the vicinity, namely shefa-'amr and nazareth. following the war the area was incorporated into the state of israel. according to palestinian historian walid khalidi, "the site is deserted. the debris of old wells and cement roofs is strewn of over the site, which is otherwise covered by a forest of eucalyptus trees and cactus." by 1992 there were no villages on al-ruways land, but the surrounding area was cultivated by residents of kibbutz yas'ur.