The ''ahdath'' ( ar, الأحداث, al-aḥdāth) were local militias or irregular police found in

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

in the 10th to 12th centuries. The ''ahdath'' maintained order and protected cities from outside domination. Though some later writers ascribed proletarian values to the ''ahdath'' as outlets of the popular will, many ''ahdath'' also fulfilled a more formal police function and, in many cases, worked in conjunction with the urban

bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...

. The ''ahdath'' were used by the Fatimid dynasty in Syria against attacks from the Crusaders.Angus McBride
Saladin and the Saracens
'. Osprey Publishing, 1986. ,

References

{{reflist Medieval Syria Military history of the Fatimid Caliphate Crusades Militias in Asia Historical law enforcement occupations