'Ayn Ghazal was a Palestinian Arab village located 21 kilometers (13 mi) south of Haifa. Depopulated during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War as a result of an Israeli military assault during Operation Shoter, the village was then completely destroyed. Incorporated into the State of Israel, it is now mostly a forested area. The Israeli moshav of Ofer ("fawn") was established in 1950 on part of the former village's lands. Ein Ayala, a moshav established in 1949, lies just adjacent; its name being the Hebrew translation of Ayn Ghazal.

Operation Shoter, also Operation Jaba', was a three-day Israeli operation during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War against an area called the "Little Triangle" south of Haifa. It was launched a week after the start of the second truce imposed by United Nations. The operation was carried out by units from the Golani, Carmeli and Alexandroni brigades with supporting troops, under the overall command of Alexandroni's 33rd Battalion. Arab forces consisted of local militia which was not part of any regular army. The objective of the operation was to clear the Tel Aviv – Haifa Road, which had been closed by the Arabs to Israeli traffic. The Israelis had been forced to take a long and dangerous route to the east through Wadi Milk.