Al-Lataminah: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
AnomieBOT (talk | contribs)
Bots
6,261,893 edits
m Dating maintenance tags: {{Cn}}
(44 intermediate revisions by 32 users not shown)
Line 5: Line 5:
| native_name = اللطامنة<!-- for cities whose native name is not in English -->
| native_name = اللطامنة<!-- for cities whose native name is not in English -->
| other_name = {{lower|0.2em|Latamneh}}
| other_name = {{lower|0.2em|Latamneh}}
| settlement_type = Village
| settlement_type = Town
<!-- images and maps ----------->
<!-- images and maps ----------->
| image_skyline =
| image_skyline =مدينة اللطامنة.JPG
| image_caption =
| image_caption =Al-Lataminah in 2014
| image_flag =
| image_flag =
| image_seal =
| image_seal =
Line 21: Line 21:
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Syria
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Syria
<!-- Location ------------------>
<!-- Location ------------------>
| coordinates = {{coord|35|19|15|N|36|37|21|E|region:SY|display=inline}}
| latd = 35 | latm =19| lats =15| latNS =N
| longd = 36 | longm =37| longs =21| longEW =E
| coordinates_region = SY
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = {{Flag|Syria}}
| subdivision_name = {{Flag|Syria}}
Line 31: Line 29:
| subdivision_name2 = [[Mahardah District|Mahardah]]
| subdivision_name2 = [[Mahardah District|Mahardah]]
| subdivision_type3 = [[Nahiyah|Subdistrict]]
| subdivision_type3 = [[Nahiyah|Subdistrict]]
| subdivision_name3 = [[Kafr Zita Nahiyah|Kafr Zita]]
| subdivision_name3 = [[Kafr Zita Subdistrict|Kafr Zita]]
| established_title = <!-- Settled -->
| established_title = <!-- Settled -->
| established_date =
| established_date =
Line 66: Line 64:
| footnotes =
| footnotes =
}}
}}
'''Al-Lataminah''' ({{lang-ar|<big>اللطامنة</big>}}, also spelled ''Latamneh'' or ''Latamnah'') is a village in northern [[Syria]], administratively part of the [[Hama Governorate]], located 39 kilometers northwest of [[Hama]]. Nearby localities include [[Karnaz]] to the northwest, [[Kafr Zita]] to the north, [[Murak, Hama|Murik]] to the northeast, [[Suran]] to the east, [[Taybat al-Imam]] to the southeast, [[Halfaya]] and [[Mahardah]] to the south, [[Shaizar]] and [[Kafr Hud]] to the southwest and [[Hayalin]] and [[al-Suqaylabiyah]] to the west. According to the [[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Syria Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS), al-Lataminah had a population of 16,267 in the 2004 census, making it the second largest locality in the ''[[nahiyah]]'' of Kafr Zita.<ref name="CBS">[http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB05-21-2004.htm General Census of Population and Housing 2004]. [[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Syria Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS). Hama Governorate. {{ar icon}}</ref> Its inhabitants are predominantly [[Sunni Muslim]]s.<ref>{{cite news|title=Alawites prepare as IS, Jabhat al-Nusra close in on regime areas|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/08/syria-jihadist-threat-homs.html|work=[[Al-Monitor]]|publisher=Al-Monitor|date=2014-08-26|accessdate=2015-05-15}}</ref>
'''Al-Lataminah''' ({{lang-ar|اللطامنة}}, also spelled ''Latamneh'' or ''Latamnah'') is a town in northern [[Syria]], administratively part of the [[Hama Governorate]], located {{convert|39|km}} northwest of [[Hama]]. Nearby localities include [[Karnaz]] to the northwest, [[Kafr Zita]] to the north, [[Murak, Hama|Murik]] to the northeast, [[Suran, Hama Governorate|Suran]] to the east, [[Taybat al-Imam]] to the southeast, [[Halfaya]] and [[Mahardah]] to the south, [[Shaizar]] and [[Kafr Hud]] to the southwest and [[Hayalin]] and [[al-Suqaylabiyah]] to the west. According to the [[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Syria Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS), al-Lataminah had a population of 16,267 in the 2004 census, making it the second largest locality in the ''[[nahiyah]]'' of Kafr Zita.<ref name="CBS">[https://archive.today/20130112133023/http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB05-21-2004.htm General Census of Population and Housing 2004]. [[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Syria Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS). Hama Governorate. {{in lang|ar}}</ref> Its inhabitants are predominantly [[Sunni Muslim]]s.<ref>{{cite news|title=Alawites prepare as IS, Jabhat al-Nusra close in on regime areas|url=http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/08/syria-jihadist-threat-homs.html|work=[[Al-Monitor]]|publisher=Al-Monitor|date=2014-08-26|access-date=2015-05-15}}</ref>


Al-Lataminah and its vicinity contain several caves, many of which had been used as homes for the village's residents. Today, the use of modern housing has prevailed, but a few families continue to live in the caves.<ref>Abdel Hassan, Mahmoud. [http://www.esyria.sy/ehama/index.php?p=stories&category=places&filename=200904261825032 The Caverns of al-Lataminah]. ''E-Homs''. E-Syria. 2009-04-16. {{ar icon}}</ref>
Al-Lataminah and its vicinity contain several caves, many of which had been used as homes for the village's residents. On the eve of the civil war, the use of modern housing had prevailed, but a few families continued to live in the caves.<ref>Abdel Hassan, Mahmoud. [http://www.esyria.sy/ehama/index.php?p=stories&category=places&filename=200904261825032 The Caverns of al-Lataminah]. ''E-Homs''. E-Syria. 2009-04-16. {{in lang|ar}}</ref> During the course of the war, most of residents were displaced.<ref name="Baiou 2021">{{cite web | last=Baiou | first=Sabrine | title=Under the Guise of Aid: The Far-Right French NGO Allegedly Supporting War Crimes in Syria | website=New Lines Institute | date=2021-11-29 | url=https://newlinesinstitute.org/syria/under-the-guise-of-aid-the-far-right-french-ngo-allegedly-supporting-war-crimes-in-syria/ | access-date=2022-09-14|quote=Today, all of Lataminah’s surviving inhabitants, along with the inhabitants of surrounding villages, have been displaced, many into refugee camps in northern Syria or as refugees in Turkey and elsewhere}}</ref>


==History==
==History==
Al-Lataminah was inhabited during the [[Stone Age]] and excavations by teams from the [[Arab world]], the [[United States]], [[France]] and the [[Netherlands]] have been held at the site.<ref>Fansa, 2008, p. 131.</ref> One such excavation was held in 1965 and several artifacts were uncovered.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Orientalia|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=snzAUD4YWboC&dq=Latamnah&source=gbs_navlinks_s|volume=37|publisher=Gregorian Biblical BookShop|page=166}}</ref>
Al-Lataminah was inhabited during the [[Stone Age]] and excavations by teams from the [[Arab world]], the [[United States]], [[France]] and the [[Netherlands]] have been held at the site.<ref>Fansa, 2008, p. 131.</ref> One such excavation was held in 1965 and several artifacts were uncovered.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Orientalia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=snzAUD4YWboC&q=Latamnah|volume=37|publisher=Gregorian Biblical BookShop|page=166}}</ref>

===Medieval period===
The [[Arab]] geographer [[al-Yaqubi]] mentions a village named ''al-Atmim'' as being part of [[Jund Hims]] ("Military District of Hims") in the 9th-century.<ref name="Lipinsky118"/><ref>le Strange, 1890, p. 404.</ref> This village corresponds with the artificial mound of Tell Latmin, near al-Lataminah.<ref name="Lipinsky118">Lipinsky, 2006, p. 118.</ref> The [[Crusades|Crusaders]] captured it in the early 11th-century. However, following the decisive victory of a Muslim alliance at the [[Battle of Harran]] in May 1104, al-Lataminah was restored to Muslim control, falling to the kingdom of [[Ridwan of Aleppo]]. The Crusader garrison in the village fled back to the [[Principality of Antioch]],<ref>Setton, 2006, p. 390.</ref> which experienced a severe territorial loss in the interior region of northwestern Syria in the aftermath of the battle.<ref>Asbridge, 2000, pp. 55-56.</ref> The Crusader forces of the Principality recaptured the village when Ridwan's forces were defeated in the Battle of Tell Aghdi in April 1105.<ref>Asbridge, 2000, p. 59.</ref> In the 1220s, during [[Ayyubid dynasty|Ayyubid]] rule, the Syrian geographer [[Yaqut al-Hamawi]] noted that al-Lataminah (''Latmin'') was "a district with a fortress in it," belonging to Hims Province.<ref>le Strange, 1890, p. 493.</ref>


===Ottoman era===
===Ottoman era===
When Swiss traveler [[Johann Ludwig Burckhardt]] visited the region in the early 19th-century, during [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] rule, al-Lataminah was described as the "principal village" of Sanjak Hama.<ref>Burckhardt, 1822, p. 141.</ref> During this period the village was part of the Sanjak (District) of [[Hama]] and in late 1829, it consisted of 84 ''[[faddan]]'', larger than any other village in the district except for [[Taldou]]. It paid 8,250 [[qirsh]] in taxes, the highest rate of the revenue-producing (''hasil'') villages in the district.<ref>Douwes, 2000, pp. 224-225.</ref> In 1838, it had a predominantly [[Sunni Muslim]] population.<ref>Smith, 1841, p. 178.</ref> Towards the end of [[Muhammad Ali Dynasty|Egyptian Khedivate]] rule (1832-1841), in 1840, al-Lataminah was a large village that paid a moderate tax rate of 700 qirsh, as result of a tax decrease for rural villages at the expense of urban towns.<ref>Douwes, 2000, p. 202.</ref>
When Swiss traveler [[Johann Ludwig Burckhardt]] visited the region in the early 19th-century, during [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] rule, al-Lataminah was described as the "principal village" of Sanjak Hama.<ref>Burckhardt, 1822, p. 141.</ref> During this period the village was part of the Sanjak (District) of [[Hama]] and in late 1829, it consisted of 84 ''[[faddan]]'', larger than any other village in the district except for [[Taldou]]. It paid 8,250 [[qirsh]] in taxes, the highest rate of the revenue-producing (''hasil'') villages in the district.<ref>Douwes, 2000, pp. 224-225.</ref> In 1838, it had a predominantly [[Sunni Muslim]] population.<ref>[[Eli Smith|Smith]], in Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, 2nd appendix, p. [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/178/mode/1up 178]</ref> Towards the end of [[Muhammad Ali Dynasty|Egyptian Khedivate]] rule (1832-1841), in 1840, al-Lataminah was a large village that paid a moderate tax rate of 700 qirsh, as result of a tax decrease for rural villages at the expense of urban towns.<ref>Douwes, 2000, p. 202.</ref>


===Ongoing Syrian civil war===
===Ongoing Syrian civil war===
The Syrian state media reported that on 9 March 2012, al-Lataminah's mayor was kidnapped from his home by anti-government fighters. His car had been stolen earlier on 30 September 2011.<ref>[http://sana.sy/eng/337/2012/03/09/405083.htm Head of al-Latamneh City Council Abducted, 2 Children Injured in Explosion, Authorities Kill Terrorists, Gunmen Turn Themselves In]. ''[[Syrian Arab News Agency]]'' (SANA). 2012-03-09.</ref> On 7 April 2012 secret [[United Nations]] monitors reported that dozens of residents were killed when the village was shelled by government forces, days before a truce was to be established.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17644404 Syria fighting 'kills 100' ahead of ceasefire]. ''[[BBC News]]''. 2012-04-07.</ref> The fatality count ranged from 24 to 27 and activists reported that the shelling was part of an attempt by security forces to raid the town after two days of clashes with defectors from the [[Syrian Army]].<ref>[http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/04/20124793812723787.html Syria deaths increase despite UN deadline]. ''[[Al Jazeera English]]''. 2012-04-07.</ref>
The Syrian state media reported that on 9 March 2012, al-Lataminah's mayor was kidnapped from his home by anti-government fighters. His car had been stolen earlier on 30 September 2011.<ref>[http://sana.sy/eng/337/2012/03/09/405083.htm Head of al-Latamneh City Council Abducted, 2 Children Injured in Explosion, Authorities Kill Terrorists, Gunmen Turn Themselves In] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120414110406/http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2012/03/09/405083.htm |date=2012-04-14 }}. ''[[Syrian Arab News Agency]]'' (SANA). 2012-03-09.</ref> On 7 April 2012 secret [[United Nations]] monitors reported that dozens of residents were killed when the village was shelled by government forces, days before a truce was to be established.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17644404 Syria fighting 'kills 100' ahead of ceasefire]. ''[[BBC News]]''. 2012-04-07.</ref> The fatality count ranged from 24 to 27 and activists reported that the shelling was part of an attempt by security forces to raid the town after two days of clashes with defectors from the [[Syrian Army]].<ref>[http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/04/20124793812723787.html Syria deaths increase despite UN deadline]. ''[[Al Jazeera English]]''. 2012-04-07.</ref>

⚫
In September 2012 ''[[Al Jazeera English]]'' classified al-Lataminah as a "rebel village". A girl was reportedly killed and several more people were injured as a result of shelling by government forces on 12 September.<ref>[http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/09/201291214046579473.html Intense fighting rages in Syrian cities]. ''[[Al-Jazeera English]]''. 2012-09-12.</ref> In a mid-December 2012 [[2012 Hama offensive|rebel offensive]] against government-held positions in the Hama Governorate, al-Lataminah was captured by opposition forces along with a string of several other villages.<ref>Khoury, Mariam. [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-syria-crisis-idUSBRE8AJ1FK20121219 Rebels seize towns in central Syria]. ''[[Reuters]]''. 2012-12-19.</ref>

[[Use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Civil War|Gas attacks]] were reported as occurring in Al-Lataminah in October 2016.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Dozens of cases of suffocation with Toxic gas in Hama |date=2 October 2016 |publisher=Baladi News Network |url=https://www.baladi-news.com/ar/news/details/10929/Dozens_of_cases_of_suffocation_with_Toxic_gas_in_Hama |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613193543/https://www.baladi-news.com/ar/news/details/10929/Dozens_of_cases_of_suffocation_with_Toxic_gas_in_Hama |archive-date=13 June 2018 |url-status=live |df=dmy}}</ref> Additional attacks occurred on 24 and 25 March in 2017.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Summary of Open Source Evidence from the March 25th 2017 Chlorine Attack in Al-Lataminah, Hama |date=9 October 2017 |publisher=Bellingcat |location=Leicester, England |url=https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017/10/09/summary-open-source-evidence-march-25th-2017-chlorine-attack-al-lataminah-hama/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009080402/https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017/10/09/summary-open-source-evidence-march-25th-2017-chlorine-attack-al-lataminah-hama/ |archive-date=9 October 2017 |url-status=live |df=dmy}}</ref> They were substantially confirmed a year later by the [[Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons]] (OPCW) as having been a [[sarin]] gas attack, and a [[chlorine]] gas attack, respectively.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Chemical weapons watchdog: Sarin, chlorine "very likely" used in 2017 Syria atatcks |date=13 June 2018 |newspaper=CBS News |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/sarin-chlorine-very-likely-used-march-2017-syria-chemical-weapons-watchdog-2018-06-13/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180613191116/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/sarin-chlorine-very-likely-used-march-2017-syria-chemical-weapons-watchdog-2018-06-13/ |archive-date=13 June 2018 |url-status=live |df=dmy}}</ref> Another sarin gas attack occurred on 30 March 2017.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Investigating the March 30, 2017 Sarin Attack in Al-Lataminah |date=26 October 2017 |publisher=Bellingcat |location=Leicester, England |url=https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017/10/26/investigating-march-30-2017-sarin-attack-al-lataminah/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026130907/https://www.bellingcat.com/news/mena/2017/10/26/investigating-march-30-2017-sarin-attack-al-lataminah/ |archive-date=26 October 2017 |url-status=live |df=dmy}}</ref> On April 8, 2020, the OPCW issued a report determining that the [[Syrian Air Force]] was the perpetrator of these chemical weapon attacks.<ref>[https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-04-08/watchdog-syrian-air-force-responsible-for-chemical-attacks Watchdog: Syrian Air Force Responsible for Chemical Attacks]</ref>

From 2017, the city was situated in the southernmost sector of rebel-held territory (sometimes called the ''[[Idlib Governorate|Idlib]] pocket''{{cn|date=September 2022}} although Al-Lataminah is part of Hama Governate). As a result, the city was exposed to attacks by the [[Syrian Armed Forces]] from three directions, and suffered repeated bombardments despite the cease-fire arrangements supposedly provided by the 2016 [[Syrian peace process#Initiation of Astana talks, and ceasefire (December 2016)|Astana accord.]]


On 20 August 2019, the [[Syrian Observatory for Human Rights]] reported that the rebel and Islamic factions including jihadi groups like a [[Hayat Tahrir al-Sham]] have withdrawn from Lataminah in north Hama province.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.syriahr.com/en/?p=138138|title=Fearing to fall in a complete siege, the factions and jihadi groups withdraw from Khan Shaykhun city and towns and villages south of it in the northern countryside of Hama|date=20 August 2019|website=Syrian Observatory for Human Rights|language=ar}}</ref>
⚫
In September ''[[Al Jazeera English]]'' classified al-Lataminah as a "rebel village". A girl was reportedly killed and several more people were injured as a result of shelling by government forces on 12 September.<ref>[http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/09/201291214046579473.html Intense fighting rages in Syrian cities]. ''[[Al-Jazeera English]]''. 2012-09-12.</ref> In a mid-December [[2012 Hama offensive|rebel offensive]] against government-held positions in the Hama Governorate, al-Lataminah was captured by opposition forces along with a string of several other villages.<ref>Khoury, Mariam. [http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/12/19/us-syria-crisis-idUSBRE8AJ1FK20121219 Rebels seize towns in central Syria]. ''[[Reuters]]''. 2012-12-19.</ref>


==References==
==References==
Line 89: Line 90:
==Bibliography==
==Bibliography==
{{refbegin}}
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book | first1 = John Lewis | last1 = Burckhardt| title = Travels in Syria and the Holy Land | url= http://books.google.com/books?id=cN1YB8fTAI4C&dq=Burckhardt+syria&source=gbs_navlinks_s | publisher = J. Murray| year = 1822}}
*{{cite book | first1 = John Lewis | last1 = Burckhardt| title = Travels in Syria and the Holy Land | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=cN1YB8fTAI4C&q=Burckhardt+syria | publisher = J. Murray| year = 1822}}
*{{cite book|first=Thomas S.|last=Asbridge|title=The Creation of the Principality of Antioch: 1098-1130|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=DvUNedDOoFgC&vq=Latmin&dq=Latmin+Syria&source=gbs_navlinks_s|publisher=Boydell & Brewer Ltd|year=2000|isbn=0851156614}}
*{{cite book|first=Dick|last=Douwes|title=The Ottomans in Syria: a history of justice and oppression|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zYptAAAAMAAJ&q=Hasya|publisher=I.B. Tauris|year=2000|isbn=1860640311}}
*{{cite book|first=Dick|last=Douwes|title=The Ottomans in Syria: a history of justice and oppression|url=http://books.google.com/books?ei=d3fqT7v3MoqE8QSI6IH3BQ&id=zYptAAAAMAAJ&dq=Hasiya+Syria&q=Hasya#search_anchor|publisher=I.B. Tauris|year=2000|isbn=1860640311}}
*{{cite book|first=Mamoun|last=Fansa|title=Die Kunst der frühen Christen in Syrien: Zeichen, Bilder und Symbole vom 4. bis 7. Jahrhundert : Begleitband zur Sonderausstellung im Landesmuseum Natur und Mensch Oldenburg|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qg_qAAAAMAAJ&q=Latamneh|publisher=Zabern|year=2008|isbn=978-3805339193|language=de}}
*{{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=E.|author-link1=Edward Robinson (scholar)|last2=Smith|first2=E.|author-link2=Eli Smith|year=1841|url=https://archive.org/details/biblicalresearch03robiuoft |title=Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea: A Journal of Travels in the year 1838| location=Boston|publisher=[[Crocker & Brewster]]|volume=3}}
*{{cite book|first=Mamoun|last=Fansa|title=Die Kunst der frühen Christen in Syrien: Zeichen, Bilder und Symbole vom 4. bis 7. Jahrhundert : Begleitband zur Sonderausstellung im Landesmuseum Natur und Mensch Oldenburg|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=Qg_qAAAAMAAJ&q=Latamneh&dq=Latamneh&hl=en&sa=X&ei=oW0iUZOJNI_I9QT18ICQAg&ved=0CEYQ6AEwBA|publisher=Zabern|year=2008|isbn=3805339194|language=German}}
*{{cite book|first=Edward|last=Lipinsky|title=On the Skirts of Canaan in the Iron Age: Historical and Topographical Researches|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=837DDbYsxAoC&dq=Latmin+Syria&source=gbs_navlinks_s|publisher=Peeters Publishers|year=2006|isbn=9042917989}}
*{{cite book|first=Kenneth Meyer|last=Setton|title=A History of the Crusades: The First Hundred Years|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=RfO1J6hjcdgC&dq=Latmin+Syria&source=gbs_navlinks_s|publisher=University of Wisconsin Press|year=2006|isbn=0299048349}}
*{{cite book|title=Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea: A Journal of Travels in the Year 1838|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=Vt0uAAAAQAAJ&dq=Deir+Bukht&source=gbs_navlinks_s|volume=3|first1=Eli|last1=Smith|first2=Edward|last2=Robinson|year=1841|publisher=Crocker and Brewster}}
*{{cite book|title=Palestine Under the Moslems: A Description of Syria and the Holy Land from A.D. 650 to 1500|url=http://www.archive.org/details/palestineundermo00lestuoft |first1=Guy|last1=le Strange|year=1890|publisher=Committee of the [[Palestine Exploration Fund]]}}
{{refend}}
{{refend}}


Line 102: Line 99:


{{DEFAULTSORT:Lataminah}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lataminah}}
[[Category:Sunni Muslim communities in Syria]]
[[Category:Populated places in Mahardah District]]
[[Category:Populated places in Mahardah District]]

Revision as of 14:24, 14 September 2022

Al-Lataminah
اللطامنة
Latamneh
Town
Al-Lataminah in 2014
Al-Lataminah in 2014
Al-Lataminah is located in Syria
Al-Lataminah
Al-Lataminah
Location in Syria
Coordinates: 35°19′15″N 36°37′21″E / 35.32083°N 36.62250°E / 35.32083; 36.62250
Country Syria
GovernorateHama
DistrictMahardah
SubdistrictKafr Zita
Population
 (2004)
 • Total16,267
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

Al-Lataminah (Arabic: اللطامنة, also spelled Latamneh or Latamnah) is a town in northern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, located 39 kilometres (24 mi) northwest of Hama. Nearby localities include Karnaz to the northwest, Kafr Zita to the north, Murik to the northeast, Suran to the east, Taybat al-Imam to the southeast, Halfaya and Mahardah to the south, Shaizar and Kafr Hud to the southwest and Hayalin and al-Suqaylabiyah to the west. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), al-Lataminah had a population of 16,267 in the 2004 census, making it the second largest locality in the nahiyah of Kafr Zita.[1] Its inhabitants are predominantly Sunni Muslims.[2]

Al-Lataminah and its vicinity contain several caves, many of which had been used as homes for the village's residents. On the eve of the civil war, the use of modern housing had prevailed, but a few families continued to live in the caves.[3] During the course of the war, most of residents were displaced.[4]

History

Al-Lataminah was inhabited during the Stone Age and excavations by teams from the Arab world, the United States, France and the Netherlands have been held at the site.[5] One such excavation was held in 1965 and several artifacts were uncovered.[6]

Ottoman era

When Swiss traveler Johann Ludwig Burckhardt visited the region in the early 19th-century, during Ottoman rule, al-Lataminah was described as the "principal village" of Sanjak Hama.[7] During this period the village was part of the Sanjak (District) of Hama and in late 1829, it consisted of 84 faddan, larger than any other village in the district except for Taldou. It paid 8,250 qirsh in taxes, the highest rate of the revenue-producing (hasil) villages in the district.[8] In 1838, it had a predominantly Sunni Muslim population.[9] Towards the end of Egyptian Khedivate rule (1832-1841), in 1840, al-Lataminah was a large village that paid a moderate tax rate of 700 qirsh, as result of a tax decrease for rural villages at the expense of urban towns.[10]

Ongoing Syrian civil war

The Syrian state media reported that on 9 March 2012, al-Lataminah's mayor was kidnapped from his home by anti-government fighters. His car had been stolen earlier on 30 September 2011.[11] On 7 April 2012 secret United Nations monitors reported that dozens of residents were killed when the village was shelled by government forces, days before a truce was to be established.[12] The fatality count ranged from 24 to 27 and activists reported that the shelling was part of an attempt by security forces to raid the town after two days of clashes with defectors from the Syrian Army.[13]

In September 2012 Al Jazeera English classified al-Lataminah as a "rebel village". A girl was reportedly killed and several more people were injured as a result of shelling by government forces on 12 September.[14] In a mid-December 2012 rebel offensive against government-held positions in the Hama Governorate, al-Lataminah was captured by opposition forces along with a string of several other villages.[15]

Gas attacks were reported as occurring in Al-Lataminah in October 2016.[16] Additional attacks occurred on 24 and 25 March in 2017.[17] They were substantially confirmed a year later by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) as having been a sarin gas attack, and a chlorine gas attack, respectively.[18] Another sarin gas attack occurred on 30 March 2017.[19] On April 8, 2020, the OPCW issued a report determining that the Syrian Air Force was the perpetrator of these chemical weapon attacks.[20]

From 2017, the city was situated in the southernmost sector of rebel-held territory (sometimes called the Idlib pocket[citation needed] although Al-Lataminah is part of Hama Governate). As a result, the city was exposed to attacks by the Syrian Armed Forces from three directions, and suffered repeated bombardments despite the cease-fire arrangements supposedly provided by the 2016 Astana accord.

On 20 August 2019, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the rebel and Islamic factions including jihadi groups like a Hayat Tahrir al-Sham have withdrawn from Lataminah in north Hama province.[21]

References

  1. ^ General Census of Population and Housing 2004. Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Hama Governorate. (in Arabic)
  2. ^ "Alawites prepare as IS, Jabhat al-Nusra close in on regime areas". Al-Monitor. Al-Monitor. 2014-08-26. Retrieved 2015-05-15.
  3. ^ Abdel Hassan, Mahmoud. The Caverns of al-Lataminah. E-Homs. E-Syria. 2009-04-16. (in Arabic)
  4. ^ Baiou, Sabrine (2021-11-29). "Under the Guise of Aid: The Far-Right French NGO Allegedly Supporting War Crimes in Syria". New Lines Institute. Retrieved 2022-09-14. Today, all of Lataminah's surviving inhabitants, along with the inhabitants of surrounding villages, have been displaced, many into refugee camps in northern Syria or as refugees in Turkey and elsewhere
  5. ^ Fansa, 2008, p. 131.
  6. ^ "Orientalia". 37. Gregorian Biblical BookShop: 166. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ^ Burckhardt, 1822, p. 141.
  8. ^ Douwes, 2000, pp. 224-225.
  9. ^ Smith, in Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, 2nd appendix, p. 178
  10. ^ Douwes, 2000, p. 202.
  11. ^ Head of al-Latamneh City Council Abducted, 2 Children Injured in Explosion, Authorities Kill Terrorists, Gunmen Turn Themselves In Archived 2012-04-14 at the Wayback Machine. Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). 2012-03-09.
  12. ^ Syria fighting 'kills 100' ahead of ceasefire. BBC News. 2012-04-07.
  13. ^ Syria deaths increase despite UN deadline. Al Jazeera English. 2012-04-07.
  14. ^ Intense fighting rages in Syrian cities. Al-Jazeera English. 2012-09-12.
  15. ^ Khoury, Mariam. Rebels seize towns in central Syria. Reuters. 2012-12-19.
  16. ^ "Dozens of cases of suffocation with Toxic gas in Hama". Baladi News Network. 2 October 2016. Archived from the original on 13 June 2018.
  17. ^ "Summary of Open Source Evidence from the March 25th 2017 Chlorine Attack in Al-Lataminah, Hama". Leicester, England: Bellingcat. 9 October 2017. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017.
  18. ^ "Chemical weapons watchdog: Sarin, chlorine "very likely" used in 2017 Syria atatcks". CBS News. 13 June 2018. Archived from the original on 13 June 2018.
  19. ^ "Investigating the March 30, 2017 Sarin Attack in Al-Lataminah". Leicester, England: Bellingcat. 26 October 2017. Archived from the original on 26 October 2017.
  20. ^ Watchdog: Syrian Air Force Responsible for Chemical Attacks
  21. ^ "Fearing to fall in a complete siege, the factions and jihadi groups withdraw from Khan Shaykhun city and towns and villages south of it in the northern countryside of Hama". Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (in Arabic). 20 August 2019.

Bibliography

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Al-Lataminah&oldid=1110263984"