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Manaf Tlass
Manaf Tlass or Manaf Tlas ( ar, مَنَاف طَلَاس, Manāf Ṭalās; born 1964) is a former Brigadier General of the Syrian Republican Guard and member of Bashar al-Assad's inner circle who defected in 2012. He was the first Syrian Republican Guard commander to defect from the Syrian military and declare support for the opposition. Early life and education Tlass was born in Rastan in 1964. He is the son of the former Syrian Defense Minister Mustafa Tlass and Lamia Al Jabiri, a member of an aristocratic Aleppo family. His father is of Circassian and Turkish origin. Businessman Firas Tlass is his elder brother. The Tlass family was the most famous Sunni family in Syria, known for supporting the government. On the other hand, the members of his family worked for the Ottoman suzerains as well as French occupiers after the First World War. Tlass was a close friend of Basil Assad, Hafez Assad's eldest son and heir apparent until his death in a 1994 car accident. He later ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al-Rastan
Al-Rastan ( ar, الرستن) is the third largest city in the Homs Governorate, located north of its administrative capital Homs and from Hama. Nearby localities include Talbiseh and al-Ghantu to the south, al-Zaafaraniyah and al-Mashrafah to the southeast, Murayj al-Durr to the northeast, Tumin to the north, Deir al-Fardis to the northwest and Kafr Nan and the Houla village cluster to the west. Ar-Rastan had a population of nearly 40,000 in 2004. It occupies the site of the Hellenistic-era city of Arethusa ( grc, Ἀρέθουσα) and still contains some of its ancient ruins. It continued to exist as a relatively small, but strategic town throughout the early Islamic and Ottoman eras. Ar-Rastan is situated adjacently south of the large bridge linking Homs and Hama. The total land area of the town is 350 hectares. It is the site of the al-Rastan Dam, a major dam on the Orontes River that has a retaining capacity of 225 million m³. The dam is principally used for irrigation ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fighting occurring throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. An estimated 9 million soldiers were killed in combat, plus another 23 million wounded, while 5 million civilians died as a result of military action, hunger, and disease. Millions more died in genocides within the Ottoman Empire and in the 1918 influenza pandemic, which was exacerbated by the movement of combatants during the war. Prior to 1914, the European great powers were divided between the Triple Entente (comprising France, Russia, and Britain) and the Triple Alliance (containing Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy). Tensions in the Balkans came to a head on 28 June 1914, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdina ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Homs
Homs ( , , , ; ar, حِمْص / ALA-LC: ; Levantine Arabic: / ''Ḥomṣ'' ), known in pre-Islamic Syria as Emesa ( ; grc, Ἔμεσα, Émesa), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level, above sea level and is located north of Damascus. Located on the Orontes River, Homs is also the central link between the interior cities and the Mediterranean coast. Before the Syrian Civil War, Homs was a major industrial centre, and with a population of at least 652,609 people in 2004, it was the third-largest city in Syria after Aleppo to the north and the capital Damascus to the south. Its population reflects Syria's general religious diversity, composed of Sunni and Alawite Muslims, and Eastern Christianity, Christians. There are a number of historic mosques and churches in the city, and it is close to the Krak des Chevaliers castle, a World Heritage Site. Homs did not emerge into the historical record until the 1st century BCE a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Al-Tall, Syria
Al-Tall ( ar, التل, at-Tall, also spelled al-Tell) is a city in southern Syria, administratively part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate and capital of the al-Tall District. Situated in the middle of the Anti-Lebanon mountains, having an elevation of roughly 1,000 meters above sea level. Nearby localities include Maaraba to the southwest, Damascus to the south, Dahiyat al-Assad and Douma to the southeast, Maarat Saidnaya to the northeast, Manin to the north, Ashrafiyat al-Wadi and Basimah to the northwest and al-Hamah and Qudsaya to the west. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), al-Tall had a population of 44,597 in the 2004 census.General Census of Population and Housing 2004 [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daraa
Daraa ( ar, دَرْعَا, Darʿā, Levantine Arabic: , also Darʿā, Dara’a, Deraa, Dera'a, Dera, Derʿā and Edrei; means "''fortress''", compare Dura-Europos) is a city in southwestern Syria, located about north of the border with Jordan. It is the capital of Daraa Governorate, historically part of the ancient Hauran region. The city is located about south of Damascus on the Damascus–Amman highway, and is used as a stopping station for travelers. Nearby localities include Umm al-Mayazen and Nasib to the southeast, Al-Naimah to the east, Ataman to the north, al-Yadudah to the northwest and Ramtha, Jordan to the southwest. According to the Syrian Central Bureau of Statistics, Daraa had a population of 97,969 in the 2004 census. It is the administrative center of a ''nahiyah'' ("sub-district") which contains eight localities with a collective population of 146,481 in 2004. By the 3rd-century, it gained the status of a ''polis'' (self-governed city). Roman historian E ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Issam Zahreddine
Issam Jad'aan Zahreddine ( ar, عِصَام جَدْعَان زَهْر الدِّين, ʿIṣām Jadʿān Zahr ad-Dīn, 9 September 1961 – 18 October 2017), also transliterated as Issam Zaher Eldin or Issam Zaher al-Deen, was a major general of the Syrian Republican Guard who played a major role in the Syrian Civil War, leading Syrian government forces on several fronts. His most prominent role was the leadership of the surrounded Syrian forces during the over three-year long Siege of Deir ez-Zor. On 18 October 2017, Zahreddine was killed by a land mine explosion during operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant on Saqr island in Deir ez-Zor. Background Zahreddine was born in the small rural village of Tarba in the As-Suwayda Governorate in 1961. A member of the Druze religious community, he was commissioned as an officer in the Airborne (Special Forces) Armoured units in 1982. Before that he served in the Baath Party's People's Militia (Popular Militia) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harasta
Harasta ( ar, حرستا, Ḥarastā, syr, ܚܪܣܬܐ, Ḥarastā), also known as ''Harasta al-Basal'' or ''Hirista'', is a city and northeastern suburb of Damascus, Rif Dimashq, Syria. Harasta has an altitude of 702 meters. It has a population of 34,184 , making it the 43rd largest city per geographical entity in Syria. History During the Syrian Civil War, it was one of the earliest rebel-held cities in Syria (see Battle of Douma and Rif Dimashq clashes (November 2011–March 2012)). Before the war, Harasta had been home to the 104th and 105th Republican Guard regiments and has a high population of Alawites in the suburbs, although it was a site of several anti-government protests in 2011. Harasta was reported under rebel control by early 2012. In March 2012 and again on 21 October 2012 it was reported that Harasta was under heavy government shelling. On 25 October, the Syrian army fired heavy tank and rocket barrages, after rebels overran two army checkpoints on the edge of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Douma, Syria
Douma ( ar, دُومَا, Dūmā) is a city in Syria. Its centre is about northeast of the centre of Damascus. Being the centre of Rif Dimashq governorate (which completely surrounds the Damascus Governorate), the city is also the administrative centre of Douma District. Douma is a major city of the region known as Ghouta, for the peri-urban settlements to the east and south of Damascus. History 21st century During the Syrian Civil War, Douma was a major flashpoint and witnessed numerous demonstrations against the Syrian government and armed clashes against the Syrian Army and security forces during the Civil uprising phase of the Syrian Civil War, early stages of the conflict. On 30 January 2012, the Syrian Army gained control of the city after the Battle of Douma, a major operation against the opposition armed groups in Rif Dimashq Governorate. On 29 June 2012, the Syrian Army was accused of committing a massacre in Douma, where more than 50 people were killed. As of 18 Oct ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ba'ath Party (Syria)
The Arab Socialist Baʿath Party ( ar, حزب البعث العربي الاشتراكي ' ) was a political party founded in Syria by Mishel ʿAflaq, Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Bītār, and associates of Zaki al-ʾArsūzī. The party espoused Baʿathism (from Arabic ''baʿth'' meaning "renaissance" or "resurrection"), which is an ideology mixing Arab nationalist, pan-Arabism, Arab socialist, and anti-imperialist interests. Baʿathism calls for unification of the Arab world into a single state. Its motto, "Unity, Liberty, Socialism", refers to Arab unity, and freedom from non-Arab control and interference. The party was founded by the merger of the Arab Baʽath Movement, led by ʿAflaq and al-Bitar, and the Arab Baʽath, led by al-ʾArsūzī, on 7 April 1947 as the Arab Baʿath Party. The party quickly established branches in other Arab countries, although it would only hold power in Iraq and Syria. The Arab Baʿath Party merged with the Arab Socialist Movement, led by Akram al- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hafez Assad
Hafez al-Assad ', , (, 6 October 1930 – 10 June 2000) was a Syrian statesman and military officer who served as President of Syria from taking power in 1971 until his death in 2000. He was also Prime Minister of Syria from 1970 to 1971, as well as regional secretary of the regional command of the Syrian regional branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party and secretary general of the National Command of the Ba'ath Party from 1970 to 2000. Assad participated in the 1963 Syrian coup d'état which brought the Syrian regional branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party to power, and the new leadership appointed him commander of the Syrian Air Force. In February 1966, Assad participated in a second coup, which toppled the traditional leaders of the Ba'ath Party. Assad was appointed defence minister by the new government. Four years later, Assad initiated a third coup which ousted the ''de facto'' leader Salah Jadid and appointed himself as leader of Syria. Assad imposed c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Damascus University
The University of Damascus ( ar, جَامِعَةُ دِمَشْقَ, ''Jāmi‘atu Dimashq'') is the largest and oldest university in Syria, located in the capital Damascus and has campuses in other Syrian cities. It was founded in 1923 through the merger of the School of Medicine (established 1903) and the Institute of Law (established 1913). Until 1958, it was named the Syrian University, but the name changed after the founding of the University of Aleppo. Damascus University was one of the most reputable universities in the Arab World before the war in Syria started in 2011. The University of Damascus consists of several faculties, higher Institutes, intermediate institutes and a school of nursing. One of the institutions specializes in teaching the Arabic language to foreigners, which is the largest institution of its kind in the Arab world. History In 1901, the establishment of the Office of the School of Medicine in Damascus was approved and in 1903 this school, which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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