The archaeological site of al-Masoudiyya is located to the north of Nablus city between the towns of Burqa and Sebastia and dates back to 1914. During the Ottoman era a main station for the Hejaz railway was built on al-Masoudiyya to link the main cities of Palestine with the Hejaz region (Saudi Arabia) for the purpose of facilitating the travel of Muslim pilgrims to Makkah and Medina.
Local sources said according to the residents of Burqa village that the family of al-Masoud donated a 38-dunum land lot in 1914 to the Hejaz Company for the purpose of constructing a railway station in the area.
Al-Masoudiyya was heavily affected by the Israeli practices after the occupation of the West Bank in 1948. The Israeli army turned the area into military barracks for five years. During that period the Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) changed the features of the area and dismantled its railway.
At the present time the IOA prevents any attempts by the Palestinian official authorities to restore the area to preserve its history and issues repeated demolition decisions against al-Masoudiyya’s park which includes children’s playground a health unit and a small cafeteria.
