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123-409: Khan Shaykhun is located at an altitude of 350 meters on the main highway between Aleppo and Damascus . The local economy is primarily agricultural, focusing on the growing of cotton and cereals. The town was formerly known for producing embroidery . Nearby localities include Hbit to the west, Kafr Zita to southwest, Murak to the south and Al-Tamanah to the east. The city was first settled in

246-531: A Roman province . Rome's presence afforded relative stability in northern Syria for over three centuries. Although the province was administered by a legate from Rome, Rome did not impose its administrative organization on the Greek-speaking ruling class or Aramaic speaking populace. The Roman era saw an increase in the population of northern Syria that accelerated under the Byzantines well into

369-517: A folk etymology related by the twelfth century CE Rabbi Pethahiah of Regensburg and the traveler Ibn Battuta , the name derives from Hebrew : חלב , lit.   'milk' or Arabic : ḥaleb , lit.   'milk' because Abraham milked his sheep there to feed the poor. From the 11th century, it was common Rabbinic usage to apply the term " Aram-Zobah " to the area of Aleppo, and many Syrian Jews continue to do so. Aleppo has scarcely been touched by archaeologists, since

492-645: A 567-day voyage before returning unsuccessfully to port. Reference is also made to the city in Shakespeare's Othello when Othello speaks his final words (ACT V, ii, 349f.): "Set you down this/And say besides that in Aleppo once,/Where a malignant and a turbanned Turk/Beat a Venetian and traduced the state,/I took by th' throat the circumcised dog/And smote him—thus!" (Arden Shakespeare Edition, 2004). The English naval chaplain Henry Teonge describes in his diary

615-648: A campaign to capture Aleppo during the reign of Sabiq ibn Mahmud of the Mirdasid dynasty , which lasted until 1080, when his reinforcements were ambushed and routed by a coalition of Arab tribesmen led by Kilabi chief Abu Za'ida at Wadi Butnan . After the death of Sharaf al-Dawla of the Uqaylid dynasty in June 1085, the headman in Aleppo Sharif Hassan ibn Hibat Allah Al-Hutayti promised to surrender

738-643: A connection between the northern countryside of Hama and the southern countryside of Idlib. Additionally, it is situated on the international highway that connects Aleppo with Damascus . The climate of Khan Shaykhun is warm and temperate. Rainfall occurs mainly in winter, with relatively little precipitation in the summer. The average annual temperature is 17.6 °C, and the yearly rainfall averages 379 mm. The residents of Khan Shaykhun primarily rely on trade and agriculture for their livelihood. The city has commerce in automobiles and grain, and crops such as olives, pistachios, wheat, and potatoes are cultivated. Volleyball

861-534: A coup d'état in 1963 . For several years, Syria went through additional coups and changes in leadership, until in March 1971, General Hafez al-Assad , an Alawite , declared himself President . It marked the beginning of the domination of personality cults centred around the Assad dynasty that pervaded all aspects of Syrian daily life and was accompanied by a systematic suppression of civil and political freedoms, becoming

984-477: A mass migration of farming families to urban centers. This migration strained infrastructure already burdened by the influx of some 1.5 million refugees from the Iraq War . The drought has been linked to anthropogenic global warming . Subsequent analysis, however, has challenged the narrative of the drought as a major contributor to the start of the war. Adequate water supply continues to be an issue in

1107-568: A military intervention in support of the government in September 2015, shifting the balance of the conflict. By late 2018, all rebel strongholds except parts of Idlib region had fallen to the government forces. In 2014, the Islamic State group seized control of large parts of Eastern Syria and Western Iraq , prompting the U.S. -led CJTF coalition to launch an aerial bombing campaign against it, while providing ground support to

1230-472: A political settlement have gone nowhere, leaving the Assad regime firmly in power. The U.S. Council on Foreign Relations said: The war whose brutality once dominated headlines has settled into an uncomfortable stalemate. Hopes for regime change have largely died out, peace talks have been fruitless, and some regional governments are reconsidering their opposition to engaging with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. The government has regained control of most of

1353-736: A second coup only four months after his. The second coup, led by Sami Hinnawi (also officer from Aleppo), empowered the Popular Party and actively sought to realize the union with Iraq. The news of an imminent union with Iraq incited a third coup the same year: in December 1949, Adib Shishakly led a coup preempting a union with Iraq that was about to be declared. Syrian Civil War Total deaths 580,000 –617,910+ Civilian deaths 219,223–306,887+ Displaced people Foreign intervention in behalf of Syrian rebels U.S.-led intervention against ISIL The Syrian civil war

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1476-412: A stalemate, by early 2023. The United States Institute of Peace said: Twelve years into Syria's devastating civil war, the conflict appears to have settled into a frozen state. Although roughly 30% of the country is controlled by opposition forces, heavy fighting has largely ceased and there is a growing regional trend toward normalizing relations with the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Over the last decade,

1599-536: A threat. Violence in the war peaked during 2012–2017, but the situation remains a crisis. By 2020, the Syrian government controlled about two-thirds of the country and was consolidating power. Frontline fighting between the Assad government and opposition groups had mostly subsided by 2023, but there had been regular flareups in northwestern Syria and large-scale protests emerged in southern Syria and spread nationwide in response to extensive autocratic policies and

1722-580: A visit he paid to the city in 1675, when there was a colony of Western European merchants living there. The city remained Ottoman until the empire's collapse, but was occasionally riven with internal feuds as well as attacks of cholera from 1823. Around 20–25 percent of the population died of plague in 1827. In 1850, a Muslim mob attacked Christian neighbourhoods, tens of Christians were killed and several churches looted. Though this event has been portrayed as driven by pure sectarian principles, Bruce Masters argues that such analysis of this period of violence

1845-631: Is a city in Syria , which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate , the most populous governorate of Syria . With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents as of 2021, it was Syria's largest city until its population was surpassed by Damascus , the capital of Syria, the largest in Syria's northern governorates and also one of the largest cities in the Levant region. Aleppo

1968-402: Is also known as the birthplace of the poet and scholar Abu al-Huda al-Sayyadi. [1] Over the years, Khan Shaykhun has produced many prominent figures, including politicians, intellectuals, and significant individuals in the fields of science, administration, and the military. Former mayor Majed Abdulkader Al Kutaini, who was born in the city in 1917, studied there and in the city of Hama. He held

2091-411: Is an ongoing multi-sided conflict in Syria involving various state-sponsored and non-state actors . In March 2011, popular discontent with the rule of Bashar al-Assad triggered large-scale protests and pro-democracy rallies across Syria, as part of the wider Arab Spring protests in the region. After months of crackdown by the government's security apparatus, various armed rebel groups such as

2214-549: Is characterized by regular skirmishes. In March 2011, popular discontent with the Ba'athist government led to large-scale protests and pro-democracy rallies across Syria, as part of the wider Arab Spring protests in the region. Numerous protests were violently suppressed by security forces in deadly crackdowns ordered by Bashar al-Assad, resulting in tens of thousands of deaths and detentions , many of whom were civilians The Syrian revolution transformed into an insurgency with

2337-623: Is classified as BSh according to Köppen and Geiger. During the Syrian Civil War , the town initially fell under control of the Syrian opposition , and later, in 2014 fell to Jabhat al-Nusra . In 2017, Deutsche Welle reported: "Idlib province, where Khan Sheikhun is located, is mostly controlled by the Tahrir al-Sham alliance, which is dominated by the Fateh al-Sham Front, formerly known as

2460-510: Is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world ; it may have been inhabited since the sixth millennium BC. Excavations at Tell as-Sawda and Tell al-Ansari, just south of the old city of Aleppo , show that the area was occupied by Amorites by the latter part of the third millennium BC. That is also the time at which Aleppo is first mentioned in cuneiform tablets unearthed in Ebla and Mesopotamia , which speak of it as part of

2583-514: Is that Ḥalab means 'white', as this is the word for 'white' in Aramaic. This may explain how Ḥalab became the Hebrew word for 'milk' or vice versa, as well as offering a possible explanation for the modern-day Arabic nickname of the city, al-Shahbāʾ ( Arabic : الشهباء ), which means "the white-colored mixed with black" and allegedly derives from the white marble found at Aleppo. According to

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2706-531: Is the most popular sport in Khan Shaykhun. The city's volleyball club has achieved excellent rankings and competes in the top league. In 2007, it placed third in Syria. The city also has a football club that plays in the third division. Khan Shaykhun is distinguished by a strong family structure, which includes notable families such as Al-Najm, Al-Dyoub, Al-Halawa, Abed, Biserini, Al-Kutaini, Al-Mawas, Al-Youssef, Al-Sarmani, Al-Sawadi, and Al-Khattab. The city

2829-537: Is too shallow and neglects the tensions that existed among the population due to the commercial favor afforded to certain Christian minorities by the Tanzimat Reforms during this time which played a large role in creating antagonism between previously cooperative groups of Muslim and Christians in the eastern quarters of the city. By 1901, the city's population was around 110,000. In October 1918, Aleppo

2952-495: The 2023 Ankara bombing , which the Turkish government alleges was carried out by attackers originating from Northeastern Syria. On November 27th, 2024 it was reported that in a sudden offensive rebels seized 13 villages, including the strategic towns of Urm Al-Sughra and Anjara, as well as Base 46, the largest Syrian regime base in western Aleppo. The non-religious Ba'ath Syrian Regional Branch government came to power through

3075-554: The Aleppo Eyalet ; the rest of what later became Syria was part of either the eyalets of Damascus, Tripoli, Sidon or Raqqa. Following the Ottoman provincial reform of 1864 Aleppo became the centre of the newly constituted Vilayet of Aleppo in 1866. Aleppo's agriculture was well-developed in the Ottoman period. Archaeological excavations revealed water mills in its river basin. Contemporary Chinese source also suggests Aleppo in

3198-524: The Armenian ruler Hethum I . The city was poorly defended by Turanshah, and as a result the walls fell after six days of siege, and the citadel fell four weeks later. The Muslim population was massacred and many Jews were also killed. The Christian population was spared. Turanshah was shown unusual respect by the Mongols, and was allowed to live because of his age and bravery. The city was then given to

3321-861: The Ayyubid dynasty . When the Ayyubids were toppled in Egypt by the Mamluks , the Ayyubid emir of Aleppo An-Nasir Yusuf became sultan of the remaining part of the Ayyubid Empire. He ruled Syria from his seat in Aleppo until, on 24 January 1260, the city was taken by the Mongols under Hulagu in alliance with their vassals the Frankish knights of the ruler of Antioch Bohemond VI and his father-in-law

3444-735: The Crusades , and again during the Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon of 1923–1946, the name Alep was used. Aleppo represents the Italianised version of this. The original ancient name, Ḥalab , has survived as the current Arabic name of the city. It is of obscure origin. Some have proposed that Ḥalab means "iron" or "copper" in the Amorite language since the area served as a major source of these metals in antiquity. Another possibility

3567-547: The Free Syrian Army began forming across the country, marking the beginning of the Syrian insurgency . By mid-2012, the crisis had escalated into a full-blown civil war. Rebel forces, receiving arms from NATO and Gulf Cooperation Council states, initially made significant advances against the government forces, who were receiving arms from Iran and Russia . Rebels captured the regional capitals of Raqqa in 2013 and Idlib in 2015. Consequently, Russia launched

3690-474: The Iran–Iraq–Syria pipeline . Syrian president Bashar al-Assad declined Qatar's year 2000 proposal to build a $ 10 billion Qatar–Turkey pipeline through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Turkey, allegedly prompting covert CIA operations to spark a Syrian civil war to pressure Bashar al-Assad to resign and allow a pro-American president to step in and sign off on the deal. Leaked documents have shown that in 2009,

3813-599: The Kurdish -majority Syrian Democratic Forces . Culminating in the Battle of Raqqa , the Islamic State was territorially defeated by late 2017. In August 2016, Turkey launched a multi-pronged invasion of northern Syria , in response to the creation of Rojava , while also fighting Islamic State and government forces in the process. Since the March 2020 Idlib ceasefire , frontline fighting has mostly subsided, but

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3936-689: The Middle Assyrian Empire , whose king renovated the temple of Hadad which was discovered in 2003. In 2003, a statue of a king named Taita bearing inscriptions in Luwian was discovered during excavations conducted by German archeologist Kay Kohlmeyer in the Citadel of Aleppo . The new readings of Anatolian hieroglyphic signs proposed by the Hittitologists Elisabeth Rieken and Ilya Yakubovich were conducive to

4059-610: The Muslim Brotherhood and the ulama . Assad regime violently crushed the Islamic revolts that occurred during 1976–1982, waged by revolutionaries from the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood . The Ba'ath party carefully constructed Assad as the guiding father figure of the party and modern Syrian nation, advocating the continuation of Assad dynastic rule of Syria. As part of the publicity efforts to brand

4182-631: The Ottoman Empire in 1516 as part of the vast expansion of the Ottoman borders during the reign of Selim I . The city then had around 50,000 inhabitants, or 11,224 households according to an Ottoman census. In 1517, Selim I obtained a fatwa from Sunnite religious leaders and unleashed violence on the Alawites , killing 9,400 men, which is known as the Massacre of the Telal . It was the centre of

4305-744: The Roman Emperor Constantius II . After the Council of Seleucia of 359, called by Constantius, Meletius of Antioch was transferred from Sebastea to Beroea but in the following year was promoted to Antioch. His successor in Beroea, Anatolius, was at a council in Antioch in 363. Under the persecuting Emperor Valens , the bishop of Beroea was Theodotus, a friend of Basil the Great . He was succeeded by Acacius of Beroea , who governed

4428-588: The Silk Road , which passed through Central Asia and Mesopotamia . When the Suez Canal was inaugurated in 1869, much trade was diverted to sea and Aleppo began its slow decline. At the fall of the Ottoman Empire after World War I , Aleppo lost its northern hinterland to modern Turkey , as well as the important Baghdad Railway connecting it to Mosul . In the 1940s, it lost its main access to

4551-712: The Syrian National Army and allied Free Syrian militias ). Another opposition faction is the Syrian Salvation Government , whose armed forces are represented by a coalition of Sunni militias led by Tahrir al-Sham . Independent of them is the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria , whose military force is the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a multi-ethnic, Arab-majority force led by

4674-595: The Syrian Revolt erupted in southern Syria in 1925, the French held in Aleppo State new elections that were supposed to lead to the breaking of the union with Damascus and restore the independence of Aleppo State. The French were driven to believe by pro-French Aleppine politicians that the people in Aleppo were supportive of such a scheme. After the new council was elected, however, it surprisingly voted to keep

4797-668: The Turcoman troops who were defending Aleppo. The Mamluk garrisons fled to Hama , until Baibars came north again with his main army, and the Mongols retreated. On 20 October 1280, the Mongols took the city again, pillaging the markets and burning the mosques. The Muslim inhabitants fled for Damascus, where the Mamluk leader Qalawun assembled his forces. When his army advanced following the Second Battle of Homs in October 1281,

4920-583: The Umayyad Caliphate . In 944, it became the seat of an independent Emirate under the Hamdanid prince Sayf al-Dawla , and enjoyed a period of great prosperity, being home to the great poet al-Mutanabbi and the philosopher and polymath al-Farabi . In 962, the city was sacked by the Byzantine general Nikephoros Phokas . Subsequently, the city and its emirate became a temporary vassal of

5043-482: The al-Qaeda affiliated al-Nusra Front." On 4 April 2017, the town came under a heavy air attack , using chemical weapons . 92 people were killed and several hundred injured. After a few months of relative calm, the town was bombed again in September 2017. Jets believed to belong to the Russian Air Force destroyed the town's power plant, which feeds northern Hama and southern Idlib. The al-Rahma clinic

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5166-593: The episcopal see of Beroea, which was in the Roman province of Syria Prima , are recorded in extant documents. The first whose name survives is that of Saint Eustathius of Antioch , who, after being bishop of Beroea, was transferred to the important metropolitan see of Antioch shortly before the 325 First Council of Nicaea . His successor in Beroea Cyrus was for his fidelity to the Nicene faith sent into exile by

5289-647: The 'land of Ḥalab,' was one of the most powerful in the Near East during the reign of Yarim-Lim I , who formed an alliance with Hammurabi of Babylonia against Shamshi-Adad I of Assyria . Yamḥad was devastated by the Hittites under Mursili I in the 16th century BC. However, it soon resumed its leading role in the Levant when the Hittite power in the region waned due to internal strife. Taking advantage of

5412-403: The 2000 Damascus Spring , Bashar al-Assad was widely reported as having failed to implement any improvements. In 2010, he imposed a controversial national ban on female Islamic dress codes (such as face veils ) across universities, where reportedly over a thousand primary school teachers that wore the niqab were reassigned to administrative jobs. A Human Rights Watch report issued just before

5535-525: The 20th century BC during the Bronze and Iron Ages and had multiple civilisations, of which at least 4 are confirmed through excavations done by the French in 1932. The ancient civilisations range from Assyria Empire , Neo-Babylonian Empire , Achaemenid Empire to other, older empires. In the 2010 census, the population was recorded at 50,469. During the Syrian Civil War, this number doubled due to

5658-574: The 5th century. In Late Antiquity , Beroea was the second largest Syrian city after Antioch , the capital of Roman Syria and the third largest city in the Roman world. Archaeological evidence indicates a high population density for settlements between Antioch and Beroea right up to the 6th century. This agrarian landscape still holds the remains of large estate houses and churches such as the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites . The names of several bishops of

5781-444: The Amorite state of Yamhad , and note its commercial and military importance. Such a long history is attributed to its strategic location as a trading center between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia. For centuries, Aleppo was the largest city in the Syrian region , and the Ottoman Empire 's third-largest after Constantinople (now Istanbul ) and Cairo . The city's significance in history has been its location at one end of

5904-642: The Autonomous Administration's Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Turkish forces currently occupy parts of northern Syria and, since 2016, have fought the SDF, IS and the Assad government while actively supporting the Syrian National Army (SNA). Between 2011 and 2017, fighting from the Syrian civil war spilled over into Lebanon as opponents and supporters of the Syrian government traveled to Lebanon to fight and attack each other on Lebanese soil. While officially neutral, Israel has exchanged border fire and conducted repeated strikes against Hezbollah and Iranian forces , whose presence in western Syria it views as

6027-447: The Byzantine Empire. For the next few decades, the city was disputed by the Fatimid Caliphate and Byzantine Empire , with the nominally independent Hamdanids in between, eventually falling to the Fatimids in 1017. In 1024, Salih ibn Mirdas launched an attack on Fatimid Aleppo, and after a few months was invited into the city by its population. The Mirdasid dynasty then ruled the city until 1080, interrupted only in 1038–1042, when it

6150-680: The CIA began funding and supporting opposition groups in Syria to foment a civil war. Harvard Professor Mitchell A Orenstein and George Romer stated that this pipeline feud is the true motivation behind Russia entering the war in support of Bashar al-Assad, supporting his rejection of the Qatar-Turkey pipeline and hoping to pave the way for the Iran-Iraq-Syria pipeline which would bolster Russia's allies and stimulate Iran's economy. The U.S. military has set up bases near gas pipelines in Syria, purportedly to fight ISIS but perhaps also to defend their own natural gas assets, which have been allegedly targeted by Iranian militias. The Conoco gas fields have been

6273-482: The Citadel of Aleppo. The two mosques inside the Citadel are known to have been converted by the Mirdasids during the 11th century from churches originally built by the Byzantines. The Sasanian Persians led by King Khosrow I pillaged and burned Aleppo in 540, then they invaded and controlled Syria briefly in the early 7th century. Soon after Aleppo was taken by the Muslims under Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah in 637. It later became part of Jund Qinnasrin under

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6396-415: The French Comte du Mesnil du Buisson revealed evidence of habitation dating back to the 20th century BC. The tell, which measures about 200–250 m long by 18–24 m high, was levelled off in the Bronze and Iron Ages to provide a platform for a series of walled towns built successively on top of each other. The second of these, dating to about 700 BC, has been identified as the Assyrian town of Ashkhani. The site

6519-445: The Great took over the city in 333 BC. Seleucus Nicator established a Hellenic settlement in the site between 301 and 286 BC. He called it Beroea (Βέροια), after Beroea in Macedon ; it is sometimes spelled as Beroia. Beroea is mentioned in 1 Macc. 9:4. Northern Syria was the center of gravity of the Hellenistic colonizing activity, and therefore of Hellenistic culture in the Seleucid Empire . As did other Hellenized cities of

6642-414: The Kurdish YPG. Other competing factions include Jihadist organizations such as the al-Qaeda-branch Hurras al-Din (successor of Al-Nusra Front ) and the Islamic State (IS). A number of foreign countries, such as Iran , Russia , Turkey and the United States , have been directly involved in the civil war , providing support to opposing factions in the conflict. Iran, Russia and Hezbollah support

6765-415: The Mongols again retreated, back across the Euphrates . In October 1299, Ghazan captured the city, joined by his vassal Armenian King Hethum II , whose forces included some Templars and Hospitallers . In 1400, the Mongol-Turkic leader Tamerlane captured the city again from the Mamluks. He massacred many of the inhabitants, ordering the building of a tower of 20,000 skulls outside the city. After

6888-434: The Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut on 3 September 1260. The Mamluks won a decisive victory, killing the Mongols' Nestorian Christian general Kitbuqa , and five days later they had retaken Damascus. Aleppo was recovered by the Muslims within a month, and a Mamluk governor placed to govern the city. Hulagu sent troops to try to recover Aleppo in December. They were able to massacre a large number of Muslims in retaliation for

7011-422: The Ottoman Empire, never attempted to settle a factor, or agent, in Damascus, despite having had permission to do so. Aleppo served as the company's headquarters until the late 18th century. As a result of the economic development, many European states had opened consulates in Aleppo during the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as the consulate of the Republic of Venice in 1548, the consulate of France in 1562,

7134-468: The Ottoman period had well-developed animal husbandry. During his travels to the Levant in the 17th century, French traveler Jacques Goujon recounted how the Maronite community in Aleppo, facing financial difficulties and considering conversion to Islam due to their inability to pay the jizya tax , was aided by the Franciscans who bought their church, enabling them to meet their tax obligations. Moreover, thanks to its strategic geographic location on

7257-406: The Philistines, as do archaeologists Benjamin Sass and Kay Kohlmeyer. Gershon Galil suggests that King David halted the Arameans' expansion into the Land of Israel on account of his alliance with the southern Philistine kings, as well as with Toi, king of Ḥamath, who is identified with Tai(ta) II, king of Palistin (the northern Sea Peoples). During the early years of the 1st millennium BC, Aleppo

7380-401: The Popular Party presented a constitution draft that called Damascus a "temporary capital." The first coup d'état in modern Syrian history was carried out in March 1949 by an army officer from Aleppo, Hussni Zaim . However, lured by the absolute power he enjoyed as a dictator, Zaim soon developed a pro-Egyptian, pro-Western orientation and abandoned the cause of union with Iraq. This incited

7503-426: The Seleucid kingdom, Beroea probably enjoyed a measure of local autonomy, with a local civic assembly or boulē composed of free Hellenes. Beroea remained under Seleucid rule until 88 BC when Syria was conquered by the Armenian king Tigranes the Great and Beroea became part of the Kingdom of Armenia . After the Roman victory over Tigranes, Syria was handed over to Pompey in 64 BC, at which time they became

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7626-418: The Syrian Arab Republic militarily, with Russia conducting airstrikes and ground operations in the country since September 2015. Since 2014, the U.S.-led international coalition has been conducting air and ground operations primarily against the Islamic State and occasionally against pro-Assad forces , and has been militarily and logistically supporting factions such as the Revolutionary Commando Army and

7749-409: The U.S.-led coalition —of severe human rights violations and massacres . The conflict has caused a major refugee crisis , with millions of people fleeing to neighboring countries such as Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan ; however, a sizable minority has also sought refuge in countries outside of the Middle East, with Germany alone accepting over half a million Syrians since 2011. Over the course of

7872-415: The advance of Malik-Shah or because the Fatimids were besieging Damascus. In 1087, Aq Sunqur al-Hajib became the Seljuk governor of Aleppo under Sultan Malik Shah I. During his bid for the Seljuk throne, Tutush had Aq Sunqur executed and after Tutush died in battle, the town was ruled by his son Ridwan . The city was besieged by Crusaders led by the King of Jerusalem Baldwin II in 1124–1125, but

7995-477: The beginning of the 2011 uprising stated that Assad had failed to substantially improve the state of human rights since taking power. The United States and its allies intended to build the Qatar–Turkey pipeline which would relieve Europe of its dependence on Russian natural gas, especially during winter months where many European homes rely on Russia to survive the winter. On the contrary, Russia and its allies intended to stop this planned pipeline and instead build

8118-414: The bishop of Beroea Antoninus for rejecting the Council of Chalcedon. The last known bishop of the see is Megas, who was at a synod called by Patriarch Menas of Constantinople in 536. After the Arab conquest, Beroea ceased to be a residential bishopric, and is today listed by the Roman Catholic Church as a titular see . Very few physical remains have been found from the Roman and Byzantine periods in

8241-420: The capital of a large and wealthier state with which it would have been hard for Damascus to compete. The State of Aleppo as drawn by France contained most of the fertile area of Syria: the fertile countryside of Aleppo in addition to the entire fertile basin of river Euphrates . The state also had access to sea via the autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta . On the other hand, Damascus, which is basically an oasis on

8364-417: The capital of an independent kingdom closely related to Ebla , known as Armi , although this identification is contested. The main temple of the storm god Hadad was located on the citadel hill in the center of the city, when the city was known as the city of Hadad . Naram-Sin of Akkad mentioned his destruction of Ebla and Armanum , in the 23rd century BC. However, the identification of Armani in

8487-428: The central feature of state propaganda. Authority in Ba'athist Syria is monopolised by three power-centres: Alawite loyalist clans, Ba'ath party and the armed forces ; glued together by unwavering allegiance towards the Assad dynasty . The Syrian Regional Branch remained the dominant political authority in what had been a one-party state until the first multi-party election to the People's Council of Syria

8610-422: The city but found it too strongly defended, hence John II moved the army southward to take nearby fortresses. On 11 October 1138, a deadly earthquake ravaged the city and the surrounding area. Although estimates from this time are very unreliable, it is believed that 230,000 people died, making it the seventh deadliest earthquake in recorded history. In 1183, Aleppo came under the control of Saladin and then

8733-448: The city as a vassal to Mitanni and was attacked by Tudhaliya I of the Hittites as a retaliation for his alliance to Mitanni. Later the Hittite king Suppiluliumas I permanently defeated Mitanni, and conquered Aleppo in the 14th century BC. Suppiluliumas installed his son Telepinus as king and a dynasty of Suppiluliumas descendants ruled Aleppo until the Late Bronze Age collapse . However, Talmi-Šarruma, grandson of Suppiluliumas I, who

8856-482: The city during the Syrian Civil War , and many parts of the city had suffered massive destruction. Affected parts of the city are currently undergoing reconstruction. An estimated 31,000 people were killed in Aleppo during the conflict. Modern-day English-speakers commonly refer to the city as Aleppo . It was known in antiquity as Khalpe , Khalibon , and to the Greeks and Romans as Beroea ( Βέροια ). During

8979-588: The city to Sultan Malik-Shah I . When the latter delayed his arrival, Hassan contacted the Sultan's brother Tutush. However, after Tutush defeated Suleiman ibn Qutulmish , who had intended to take Aleppo for himself, in the battle of Ain Salm , Hassan went back on his commitment. In response, Tutush attacked the city and managed to get hold of parts of the walls and towers in July 1086, but he left in September, either due to

9102-580: The city, and his brother Khwaja Sanos Chelebi , who monopolized Aleppine silk trade and were important patrons of the Armenians. However, the prosperity Aleppo experienced in the 16th and 17th century started to fade as silk production in Iran went into decline with the fall of the Safavid dynasty in 1722. By mid-century, caravans were no longer bringing silk from Iran to Aleppo, and local Syrian production

9225-498: The civil society groups, political reformists and democratic activists that emerged during the Damascus spring in the 2000s. Bashar Al-Assad claims that no 'moderate opposition' to his government exists, and that all opposition forces are Islamists focused on destroying his secular leadership ; his view was that terrorist groups operating in Syria are 'linked to the agendas of foreign countries'. The total population in July 2018

9348-652: The civilian population. Upon Hafez al-Assad's death in 2000, his son Bashar al-Assad succeeded him as the President of Syria . Bashar's wife Asma , a Sunni Muslim born and educated in Britain, was initially hailed in the Western press a "rose in the desert". The couple once raised hopes amongst Syrian intellectuals and outside Western observers as wanting to implement economic and political reforms. However, Bashar failed to deliver on promised reforms, instead crushing

9471-552: The conclusion that the country ruled by Taita was called Palistin . This country extended in the 11th-10th centuries BC from the Amouq Valley in the west to Aleppo in the east down to Maharda and Shaizar in the south. Due to the similarity between Palistin and Philistines, Hittitologist John David Hawkins (who translated the Aleppo inscriptions) hypothesizes a connection between the Syro-Hittite states Palistin and

9594-412: The conflict erupted into one of the most complicated in the world, with a dizzying array of international and regional powers, opposition groups, proxies, local militias and extremist groups all playing a role. The Syrian population has been brutalized, with nearly a half a million killed, 12 million fleeing their homes to find safety elsewhere, and widespread poverty and hunger. Meanwhile, efforts to broker

9717-460: The consulate of England in 1583 and the consulate of the Netherlands in 1613. The Armenian community of Aleppo also rose to prominence in this period as they moved into the city to take up trade and developed the new quarter of Judayda. The most outstanding among Aleppine Armenian merchants during the late 16th and early 17th centuries were Khwaja Petik Chelebi , the richest merchant in

9840-470: The country), Druze 3% and Jewish (few remaining in Damascus and Aleppo). Socioeconomic inequality increased significantly after free market policies were initiated by Hafez al-Assad in his later years, and it accelerated after Bashar al-Assad came to power. With an emphasis on the service sector , these policies benefited a minority of the nation's population, mostly people who had connections with

9963-633: The country, and Assad's hold on power seems secure. In 2023, the main military conflict was not between the Syrian government and rebels, but between Turkish forces and factions within Syria. In late 2023, Turkish forces continued to attack Kurdish forces in the region of Rojava. Starting on 5 October 2023, the Turkish Armed Forces launched a series of air and ground strikes targeting the Syrian Democratic Forces in Northeastern Syria . The airstrikes were launched in response to

10086-513: The death of Kitbuqa, but after a fortnight could make no other progress and had to retreat. The Mamluk governor of the city became insubordinate to the central Mamluk authority in Cairo, and in Autumn 1261 the Mamluk leader Baibars sent an army to reclaim the city. In October 1271, the Mongols led by general Samagar took the city again, attacking with 10,000 horsemen from Anatolia , and defeating

10209-487: The economic situation. The protests were noted as resembling the 2011 revolution that preceded the civil war. The war has resulted in an estimated 470,000–610,000 violent deaths, making it the second-deadliest conflict of the 21st century, after the Second Congo War . International organizations have accused virtually all sides involved—the Assad government, IS, opposition groups, Iran, Russia, Turkey, and

10332-487: The federation was Subhi Barakat , an Antioch -born politician from Aleppo. The federation ended in December 1924, when France merged Aleppo and Damascus into a single Syrian State and separated the Alawite State again. This action came after the federation decided to merge the three federated states into one and to take steps encouraging Syria's financial independence, steps which France viewed as too much. When

10455-595: The formation of resistance militias across the country, deteriorating into a full-blown civil war by 2012. The war is fought by several factions. The Syrian Arab Armed Forces , alongside its domestic and foreign allies, represent the Syrian Arab Republic and Assad government. Opposed to it is the Syrian Interim Government , a big-tent alliance of pro-democratic , nationalist opposition groups (whose military forces consist of

10578-578: The former Emir of Homs , al-Ashraf , and a Mongol garrison was established in the city. Some of the spoils were also given to Hethum I for his assistance in the attack. The Mongol Army then continued on to Damascus , which surrendered, and the Mongols entered the city on 1 March 1260. In September 1260, the Egyptian Mamluks negotiated for a treaty with the Franks of Acre which allowed them to pass through Crusader territory unmolested, and engaged

10701-500: The fringes of the Syrian Desert , had neither enough fertile land nor access to sea. Basically, Gouraud wanted to satisfy Aleppo by giving it control over most of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria so that it would never want to unite with Damascus again. The limited economic resources of the Syrian states made the option of completely independent states undesirable for France, because it threatened an opposite result:

10824-462: The government, and members of the Sunni merchant class of Damascus and Aleppo. In 2010, Syria's nominal GDP per capita was only $ 2,834, comparable to Sub-Saharan African countries such as Nigeria and far lower than its neighbors such as Lebanon, with an annual growth rate of 3.39%, below most other developing countries. The country also faced particularly high youth unemployment rates. At the start of

10947-408: The idea of a united Syria after the Battle of Maysaloun . By separating Aleppo from Damascus, Gouraud wanted to capitalize on a traditional state of competition between the two cities and turn it into political division. The people in Aleppo were unhappy with the fact that Damascus was chosen as capital for the new nation of Syria. Gouraud sensed this sentiment and tried to address it by making Aleppo

11070-531: The immigration of numerous "Levantine" (European-origin) families who dominated international trade. Aleppo's mixed commercial tribunal ( ticaret mahkamesi ), one of the first in the Ottoman Empire, was set up around 1855. Reference is made to the city in 1606 in William Shakespeare's Macbeth . The witches torment the captain of the ship the Tiger , which was headed to Aleppo from England and endured

11193-538: The inscription of Naram-Sim as Armi in the Eblaite tablets is heavily debated, as there was no Akkadian annexation of Ebla or northern Syria. In the Old Babylonian and Old Assyrian Empire period, Aleppo's name appears in its original form as Ḥalab (Ḥalba) for the first time. Aleppo was the capital of the important Amorite dynasty of Yamḥad . The kingdom of Yamḥad (c. 1800–1525 BC), alternatively known as

11316-659: The later years of the century, creating a long-running famine which by 1798 killed half of its inhabitants." The economy of Aleppo was badly hit by the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. This, in addition to political instability that followed the implementation of significant reforms in 1841 by the central government, contributed to Aleppo's decline and the rise of Damascus as a serious economic and political competitor with Aleppo. The city nevertheless continued to play an important economic role and shifted its commercial focus from long-distance caravan trade to more regional trade in wool and agricultural products. This period also saw

11439-495: The modern city occupies its ancient site. The earliest occupation of the site was around 8,000 BC, as shown by excavations in Tallet Alsauda. Aleppo appears in historical records as an important city much earlier than Damascus . The first record of Aleppo comes from the third millennium BC, in the Ebla tablets when Aleppo was referred to as Ha-lam (𒄩𒇴). Some historians, such as Wayne Horowitz , identify Aleppo with

11562-461: The nation and Assad dynasty as inseparable; slogans such as "Assad or we burn the country", "Assad or to hell with the country" and "Hafez Assad, forever" became an integral part of the state and party discourse during the 1980s. Eventually the party organisation itself became a rubber stamp and the power structures became deeply dependent on sectarian affiliation to the Assad family and the central role of armed forces needed to crack down on dissent in

11685-531: The ongoing civil war and it is frequently the target of military action. The human rights situation in Syria has long been the subject of harsh critique from global organizations. The rights of free expression , association and assembly were strictly controlled in Syria even before the uprising. The country was under emergency rule from 1963 until 2011 and public gatherings of more than five people were banned. Security forces had sweeping powers of arrest and detention. Despite hopes for democratic change with

11808-403: The position of mayor from 1950 to 1975. During his tenure, he played a vital role in the organization and management of the city. He was known for his humility, his love for the city's residents, and his constant willingness to help. The current atmospheric condition in Khan Shaykhun is recognised as a regional steppe climate. There is not much rainfall in Khan Shaykhun all year long. The climate

11931-575: The power vacuum in the region, Baratarna , king of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni instigated a rebellion that ended the life of Yamhad's last king Ilim-Ilimma I in c. 1525 BC, Subsequently, Parshatatar conquered Aleppo and the city found itself on the frontline in the struggle between the Mitanni, the Hittites and Egypt . Niqmepa of Alalakh who descends from the old Yamhadite kings controlled

12054-702: The province (as well as the Kurds) supported the Turks in this war against the French, including the leader of the Hananu Revolt , Ibrahim Hananu , who directly coordinated with Atatürk and received weaponry from him. The outcome, however, was disastrous for Aleppo, because as per the Treaty of Lausanne , most of the Province of Aleppo was made part of Turkey with the exception of Aleppo and Alexandretta ; thus, Aleppo

12177-454: The result was respected. This was the last time that independence was proposed for Aleppo. Bad economic situation of the city after the separation of the northern countryside was exacerbated further in 1939 when Alexandretta was annexed to Turkey as Hatay State , thus depriving Aleppo of its main port of Iskenderun and leaving it in total isolation within Syria. The increasing disagreements between Aleppo and Damascus led eventually to

12300-497: The sea, by Antakya and İskenderun , also to Turkey. The growth in importance of Damascus in the past few decades further exacerbated the situation. This decline may have helped to preserve the old city of Aleppo, its medieval architecture and traditional heritage. It won the title of the Islamic Capital of Culture 2006 and has had a wave of successful restorations of its historic landmarks. The battle of Aleppo occurred in

12423-544: The see for over 50 years and was at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the Council of Ephesus in 431. In 438, he was succeeded by Theoctistus, who participated in the Council of Chalcedon in 451 and was a signatory of the joint letter that the bishops of the province of Syria Prima sent in 458 to Emperor Leo I the Thracian about the murder of Proterius of Alexandria . In 518, Emperor Justin I exiled

12546-434: The society. Critics of the regime have pointed out that deployment of violence is at the crux of Ba'athist Syria and describe it as "a dictatorship with genocidal tendencies". Hafez ruled Syria for 3 decades with an iron first, using methods ranging from censorship to violent measures of state terror such as mass murders , forced deportations and brutal practices such as torture , which were unleashed collectively upon

12669-612: The split of the National Block into two factions: the National Party , established in Damascus in 1946, and the People's Party , established in Aleppo in 1948 by Rushdi al-Kikhya , Nazim Qudsi and Mustafa Bey Barmada . An underlying cause of the disagreement, in addition to the union with Iraq, was Aleppo's intention to relocate the capital from Damascus. The issue of the capital became an open debate matter in 1950 when

12792-495: The states collapsing and being forced back into unity. This was why France proposed the idea of a Syrian federation that was realized in 1923. Initially, Gouraud envisioned the federation as encompassing all the states, even Lebanon. In the end however, only three states participated: Aleppo, Damascus , and the Alawite State . The capital of the federation was Aleppo at first, but it was relocated to Damascus. The president of

12915-745: The town's residents had abandoned it. On 19 August 2019, the Syrian Army was reported to have taken control of the city's eastern and northern districts. The next day, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that rebel and Islamic factions and jihadi groups withdrew from Khan Shaykhun completely. On 21 August 2019, the Syrian Army fully secured the town after capturing the strategic hill of Tell al-Tara and Al-Khazanat Camp in southern Idlib. Aleppo Aleppo ( / ə ˈ l ɛ p oʊ / ə- LEP -oh ; Arabic : ﺣَﻠَﺐ , ALA-LC : Ḥalab , IPA: [ˈħalab] )

13038-584: The trade route between Anatolia and the east, Aleppo rose to high prominence in the Ottoman era, at one point being second only to Constantinople in the empire. By the middle of the 16th century, Aleppo had displaced Damascus as the principal market for goods coming to the Mediterranean region from the east. This is reflected by the fact that the Levant Company of London , a joint-trading company founded in 1581 to monopolize England's trade with

13161-482: The union with Damascus. Syrian nationalists had waged a massive anti-secession public campaign that vigorously mobilized the people against the secession plan, thus leaving the pro-French politicians no choice but to support the union. The result was a big embarrassment for France, which wanted the secession of Aleppo to be a punitive measure against Damascus, which had participated in the Syrian Revolt, however,

13284-709: The war, a number of peace initiatives have been launched, including the March 2017 Geneva peace talks on Syria led by the United Nations , but fighting has continued. In October 2019, Kurdish leaders of Rojava , a region within Syria, announced they had reached a major deal with the government of Syria under Assad. This deal was enacted in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from Syria. The Kurdish leaders made this deal in order to obtain Syria's help in stopping hostile Turkish forces who were invading Syria and attacking Kurds. The civil war had largely subsided, settling into

13407-414: The war, discontent against the government was strongest in Syria's poor areas, predominantly among conservative Sunnis. These included cities with high poverty rates, such as Daraa and Homs , and the poorer districts of large cities. This coincided with the most intense drought ever recorded in Syria, which lasted from 2006 to 2011 and resulted in widespread crop failure, an increase in food prices and

13530-549: The waves of refugees the city experienced. However, many of its original inhabitants, as well as the refugees, left the city as a result of the intense bombardments it was subjected to. Khan Shaykhun takes its name from a 14th-century khan or caravanserai built by the Mamluk emir Sayf al-Din Shaykhu al-'Umari. The town grew up around the khan and is situated below a prominent tell , where excavations carried out in 1930 under

13653-552: The withdrawal of the Mongols, all the Muslim population returned to Aleppo. On the other hand, Christians who left the city during the Mongol invasion, were unable to resettle back in their own quarter in the old town, a fact that led them to establish a new neighbourhood in 1420, built at the northern suburbs of Aleppo outside the city walls, to become known as al-Jdeydeh quarter ("new district" Arabic: جديدة ). Aleppo became part of

13776-602: Was captured by Prince Feisal 's Sherifial Forces and the 5th Cavalry Division of the Allied forces from the Ottoman Empire during the World War I . At the end of war, the Treaty of Sèvres made most of the Province of Aleppo part of the newly established nation of Syria , while Cilicia was promised by France to become an Armenian state. However, Kemal Atatürk annexed most of the Province of Aleppo as well as Cilicia to Turkey in his War of Independence . The Arab residents in

13899-664: Was abandoned around 300 BC. In more recent times, Khan Shaykhun was noted for its beehive houses , an architectural style found across the Levant and probably exported from there to North Africa. The city of Khan Shaykhun is part of the Maarat al-Numan district in the southern countryside of Idlib and is administratively linked to the Idlib Governorate in northwestern Syria. It is located 35 kilometers from Hama , 100 kilometers from Aleppo , and 70 kilometers from Idlib . The city holds strategic importance, as it serves as

14022-447: Was also struck. On 27 February 2018, pro-government media reported that Tahrir al-Sham withdrew from the city of Khan Shaykhun, and was expelled from western Aleppo by other rebel groups. In mid-April 2018, pro-opposition media reported that Tahrir al-Sham once again seized the town, which had been devoid of rebel military presence. In August 2018, the town again came under aerial bombardment by pro-government forces. By 2019, almost all of

14145-603: Was cut from its northern satellites and from the Anatolian cities beyond on which Aleppo depended heavily in commerce. Moreover, the Sykes-Picot division of the Near East separated Aleppo from most of Mesopotamia , which also harmed the economy of Aleppo. The State of Aleppo was declared by French General Henri Gouraud in September 1920 as part of a French plan to make Syria easier to administer by dividing it into several smaller states. France became more concerned about

14268-401: Was estimated at 19,454,263 people; ethnic groups—approximately Arab 50%, Alawite 15%, Kurd 10%, Levantine 10%, other 15% (includes Druze , Ismaili , Imami , Assyrian , Turkmen , Armenian ); religions— Muslim 87% (official; includes Sunni 74% and Alawi, Ismaili and Shia 13%), Christian 10% (mainly of Eastern Christian churches —may be smaller as a result of Christians fleeing

14391-408: Was held in 2012. On 31 January 1973, Hafez al-Assad implemented a new constitution, leading to a national crisis. The 1973 Constitution entrusted Arab Socialist Baath party with the distinctive role as the "leader of the state and society", empowering it to mobilise the civilians for party programmes, issue decrees to ascertain their loyalty and supervise all legal trade unions. Ba'athist ideology

14514-542: Was imposed upon children as compulsory part of school curriculum and Syrian Armed Forces were tightly controlled to the Party. The constitution removed Islam from being recognised as the state religion and stripped existing provisions such as the president of Syria being required to be a Muslim . These measures caused widespread furore amongst the public, leading to fierce demonstrations in Hama , Homs and Aleppo organized by

14637-558: Was in the hands of the Fatimid commander-in-chief in Syria, Anushtakin al-Dizbari , and in 1057–1060, when it was ruled by a Fatimid governor, Ibn Mulhim . Mirdasid rule was marked by internal squabbles between different Mirdasid chieftains that sapped the emirate's power and made it susceptible to external intervention by the Byzantines, Fatimids, Uqaylids , and Turkoman warrior bands. In late 1077, Seljuk emir Tutush I launched

14760-823: Was incorporated into the Aramean realm of Bit Agusi , which held its capital at Arpad . Bit Agusi along with Aleppo and the entirety of the Levant was conquered by the Assyrians in the 8th century BC and became part of the Neo-Assyrian Empire during the reign of Tiglath-Pileser III until the late 7th century BC, before passing through the hands of the Neo-Babylonians and the Achaemenid Persians . The region remained known as Aramea and Eber Nari throughout these periods. Alexander

14883-467: Was insufficient for Europe's demand. European merchants left Aleppo and the city went into an economic decline that was not reversed until the mid-19th century when locally produced cotton and tobacco became the principal commodities of interest to the Europeans. According to Halil İnalcık , "Aleppo ... underwent its worst catastrophe with the wholesale destruction of its villages by Bedouin raiding in

15006-568: Was not conquered after receiving protection by forces of Aqsunqur al Bursuqi arriving from Mosul in January 1125. In 1128, Aleppo became capital of the expanding Zengid dynasty , which ultimately conquered Damascus in 1154. In 1138, Byzantine emperor John II Komnenos led a campaign, which main objective was to capture the city of Aleppo. On 20 April 1138, the Christian army including Crusaders from Antioch and Edessa launched an attack on

15129-548: Was the king of Aleppo, had fought on the Hittite side, along with king Muwatalli II during the Battle of Kadesh against the Egyptian army led by Ramesses II . Aleppo had cultic importance to the Hittites as the center of worship of the Storm-God . This religious importance continued after the collapse of the Hittite empire at the hands of the Assyrians and Phrygians in the 12th century BC, when Aleppo became part of

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