Hama Governorate


Hama Governorate is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in western-central Syria, bordering Idlib and Aleppo Governorates to the south, Raqqa Governorate to the west, Homs Governorate to the north, and Tartus and Latakia Governorate to the east. It is the only Governorate that does not border a foreign country. Measures of its area vary from 8,844 km² to 8,883 km², with its capital being the city of Hama.

History

Archaeological sites

Hama has historically been a centre of opposition to the Assad regime, and it was the centre of an uprising in the late 1970s - early 1980s that resulted in the 1982 Hama massacre.

Syrian Civil War

The city was one of several that saw anti-Assad protests in 2011, the violent suppression of which ultimately led to the outbreak of civil war. Despite this, for the most part the governorate has stayed under the Syrian Government's control, with exceptions of parts of the north-west in the early years of the conflict. The eastern desert regions of the governorate fell under the control of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant by 2016, but by September 2017 the Syrian Army had managed to oust them.

Geography

The western regions of the governorate are part of the Syrian Coastal Mountain Range, running north to south. Roughly parallel with the mountains to the east is the Al-Ghab Plain, with the Orontes river flowing through it, Hama city lies on this river. The central and eastern regions of the governorate consists of flatter desert terrain.

Settlements

The provincial capital is Hama; other major settlements include Akakir, Al-Hamraa, Al Qastal, Al-Saan, Aqarib as Safi, At Tammazah, Ithriya, Kafr Buhum, Karnaz, Mahardah, Masyaf, Murak, Qalaat al-Madiq, Qasr Ibn Wardan, Sabburah, Salamiyah, Shaykh Hilal, Shaytalun, Suran and Tayyibat at Turki.

Districts

The governorate is divided into five districts. The districts are further divided into 22 sub-districts :
As per the 2004 Syrian census the population was 1,385,000. A 2011 UNOCHA estimate put the population at 1,628,000, though this has likely changed since the start of the war.
Sunni Muslims form the majority at 61%, followed by Alawites, Ismailis, Christian and Shi'ite Muslims.

Gallery