Al-Rai (, ''al-Ra'i'' or ''al-Rayi''; ), is a small town in northern

Aleppo Governorate Aleppo Governorate ( / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ḥalab'' ) is one of the fourteen Governorates of Syria, governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,867,000 (2011 Est.), almost 23% of the t ...

, northern

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. With 4,609 inhabitants, as per the 2004 census, al-Rai is the administrative center of the sparsely populated Nahiya al-Rai. Located on the

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

Baghdad Railway Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

and close to the Turkish border, right across

Elbeyli Elbeyli, formerly Alimantar, is a town and the administrative seat of Elbeyli District in the Kilis Province in Turkey. Its population is 1,974 (2022). The town is inhabited by Turkomans of the Barak Barak ( or ; ; Tiberian Hebrew: '' Bār ...

, it is however a strategically important village. The town of

Akhtarin Akhtarin () is a town in northern Aleppo Governorate, northwestern Syria. The largest town and administrative centre of Nahiya Akhtarin of the A'zaz District has a population of 5,305 in the 2004 census. Located northeast of the city of Aleppo ...

, some to the southwest. Larger towns are

Azaz Azaz () is a city in northwest Syria, roughly north-northwest of Aleppo. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Azaz had a population of 31,623 at the 2004 census.

, some to the west, and

Jarablus Jarabulus (, ALA-LC: , Aleppo dialect: ; or ; ) is a Syrian city administratively belonging to Aleppo Governorate, under the de facto control of the Syrian Opposition. Jarabulus lies on the western bank of the Euphrates and north of Lake Assad ...

and

Manbij Manbij (; ; ) is a city in the northeast of Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria, west of the Euphrates. The 2004 census gives its population as nearly 100,000.

, both some to the east. Prior to the Syrian Civil War, the town was inhabited primarily by Turkmen.Günümüzde Suriye Türkmenleri
Suriye’de Değişimin Ortaya Çıkardığı Toplum: Suriye Türkmenleri.
ORSAM Rapor № 83. ORSAM – Ortadoğu Türkmenleri Programı Rapor № 14. Ankara — November 2011. These Turkmens belong to the

Elbegli Elbegli ( or ) is a Turkoman tribe mainly residing in Kilis, Gaziantep, and Sivas provinces in Turkey. History The tribe was mainly found around Sivas and Kemah before the Ottoman authorities resettled them near Sajur River during the 17th and ...

tribe.

Railway

The Al-Rai Railway Border Gate which had been closed since 1981, was reopened on 22 December 2009 after the 62 km line between Aleppo and Al-Rai was renewed. The opening ceremony was attended by the transport ministers of Turkey and Syria,

Binali Yıldırım Binali Yıldırım (; born 20 December 1955) is a Turkish politician who served as the List of Prime Ministers of Turkey, 27th and last prime minister of Turkey from 2016 to 2018 and Speaker of the Grand National Assembly from 2018 to 2019. He w ...

and Yaarub Bader.

Education

Education under Turkish occupation (2016–present)

On 3 February 2021, a

shoemaking Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand, often by groups of shoemakers, or '' cordwainers'' (sometimes misidentified as cobblers, who repair shoes rather than make them). In the 18th cen ...

and

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

ing workshop for prisoners was established in collaboration between Turkish-Dutch

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

Sumud and Turkey's Ministry of Youth and Sports. On 6 February 2021, '' Official Gazette of Turkey'' announced Turkey's plan to open a new

health care Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

vocational school A vocational school (alternatively known as a trade school, or technical school), is a type of educational institution, which, depending on the country, may refer to either secondary education#List of tech ed skills, secondary or post-secondar ...

and a

medical faculty A medical school is a tertiary educational institution, professional school, or forms a part of such an institution, that teaches medicine, and awards a professional degree for physicians. Such medical degrees include the Bachelor of Medicine, ...

in Al-Rai. Syrian Foreign Ministry expressed their objection through Syria's official news agency SANA, and named the decision "a dangerous act and a flagrant violation of international law".

Syrian Civil War

In the Syrian Civil War, al-Rai was captured by

Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...

(FSA) forces in July 2012 and held until early February 2014, when the FSA-allies the

Al-Tawhid Brigade The al-Tawhid Brigade (; named after Tawhid, the "oneness of God,") was an armed Islamist insurgent group involved in the Syrian Civil War. The al-Tawhid Brigade was formed in 2012. Reportedly backed by Qatar, al-Tawhid was considered one of ...

and

Conquest Brigade The Conquest Brigade (), also known as Battalion of Conquest or al-Fatah Brigade, is a Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist Free Syrian Army group that takes part in the Syrian Civil War. One of the largest rebel factions active in Aleppo Gover ...

were assaulted by a predominantly Chechen unit of the

Islamic State The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...

, (IS) which seized the town on 3 February 2014. Since then, the

considered the town its main stronghold in the Aleppo countryside. In the course of their Northern Aleppo offensive, FSA units captured the town twice in April 2016 and in June 2016, but both times were not able to withstand counterattacks by the Islamic State. The FSA, supported by

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, recaptured the town a third time in the August 2016 Battle of al-Rai, but lost it yet another time to an

counterattack later in August. On 3 September 2016, rebels were reported to have recaptured the town for the fourth time with the help of Turkish forces (including tanks) and to have seized several villages close by. Syrian Turkmen Brigades' political wing Syrian Turkmen Assembly announced the relocation of its headquarters into Al-Rai on 31 December 2019, which was previously located in

, Turkey.

Gallery

Al-Rayi nahiyah.svg, ''al-Rai'' is the administrative center of Nahiya al-Rai of the

Al-Bab District al-Bab District () is a district of Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria. The administrative centre is the city of al-Bab Al-Bab ( / ALA-LC: ''al-Bāb'') is a Syrian city, administratively belonging to the Aleppo Governorate. Al-Bab is loca ...

Çobanbey_(Al-Rai)_Council.jpg, Al-Rai Council of Syrian Turkmen Assembly

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rai Turkmen settlements in Aleppo Governorate Populated places in al-Bab District