Masua

Masua (Hebrew: מַשּׂוּאָה, lit. Torch, Arabic: مسواه‎), also transliterated as Massu'a, is a moshav shitufi and Israeli settlement in the West Bank. Located in the Jordan Valley with an area of 6,000 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Bik'at HaYarden Regional Council. In 2011 it had a population of 148.

The village was established in 1969 as a Nahal settlement, and was converted to a civilian moshav by a HaOved HaTzioni gar'in five years later.

The international community considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law, but the Israeli government disputes this.

Sartava Nature Reserve

Four kilometers west-southwest of Masua is the Sartava Nature Reserve, named in tribute to a mountain from which, in Mishnaic times, Jews would relay signals via torch to indicate that a new month had been proclaimed.

The summit of Sartava has remains of a fort built by King Alexander of Judea. The area of Sartava, which is split down its length due to the Great Rift Valley, is unique in that it embodies a transition between the Mediterranean habitats of Samaria on the one hand and the more desert-like habitats of the Arava on the other.