Masyaf is a city in northwestern Syria. It is the center of the Masyaf District in the Hama Governorate. As of 2004, Masyaf had a religiously diverse population of 22,000 Ismailis, Alawites and Christians. The city is well known for its large medieval castle, particularly its role as the headquarters of the Nizari Ismailis and their elite Assassins unit.
Several different denominations and sects of Islam are practised within Syria, whom collectively, constitute approximately 87% of the population and forming a majority in most of the districts of the country.
Al-Qadmus is a town in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Tartus Governorate, located northeast of Tartus and 14 kilometres southeast of Baniyas. Nearby localities include Kaff al-Jaa and Masyaf to the east, Wadi al-'Uyun and al-Shaykh Badr to the south, Hammam Wasel, al-Qamsiyah and Maten al-Sahel to the southwest, Taanita to the west, al-Annazeh to the northwest and Deir Mama to the northeast. It is situated just east of the Mediterranean coast and its ruined castle stands on a plateau roughly 850 metres above sea level and just above the town.
The Kaysanites were a Shi'i sect of Islam that reportedly formed from the followers of Al-Mukhtar. Kasaniyya, on the other hand, is a name given to all sects originated from Mokhtar's revolt. Kaysaniyya, traced Imamate from Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyyah and his successors.
Farhad Daftary is a Belgian-born Iranian-British Islamic scholar who is co-director and head of the Department of Academic Research and Publications at the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London. He is related to the Aga Khan IV.
Saleh al-Ali or Shaykh Saleh Ahmad al-Ali was a Syrian Alawi leader who commanded the Syrian Revolt of 1919, one of the first rebellions against the French mandate of Syria before the Great Syrian Revolt.
The Alawite revolt was a rebellion, led by Shaykh Saleh al-Ali against the French authorities of the Occupied Enemy Territory Administration and later as part of the Franco-Syrian War against the newly established French Mandate of Syria, primarily in the coastal Jabal Ansariyah mountain range. The revolt was one of the first acts of armed resistance against the French forces in Syria, and its leader, Shaykh Saleh, declared his allegiance to the provisional Arab government in Damascus. He coordinated with the leaders of other anti-French revolts in the country, including the revolt of Ibrahim Hananu in the Aleppo countryside and Subhi Barakat's revolt in Antioch.
Aqarib (Arabic: عقارب, also known as Aqarib al-Safiyah is a town in northern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, located 45 kilometres east of Hama at the edge of the Syrian Desert. Nearby localities include Salamiyah and Tell al-Tut to the southwest, Uqayribat to the southeast and Sabburah to the north. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics, Aqarib had a population of 3,830 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Ismailis.
Khawabi, also spelled Qala'at al-Khawabi is a village and medieval citadel in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Tartus Governorate, located 20 kilometers northeast of Tartus and 12 kilometers east of al-Sawda. Khawabi is situated in a hilly area, surrounded by olive groves, in the Coastal Mountain Range. Nearby localities include al-Sawda and to the west, Al-Annazah to the northwest, al-Qamsiyah to the north, Brummanet Raad to the northeast, al-Shaykh Badr to the east, Khirbet al-Faras to the south and Bimalkah to the southwest.
Akakir is a village in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, located southwest of Hama. Nearby localities include Kafr Ram to the west, Fahel to the south, al-Shinyah to the southeast, al-Taybah al-Gharbiyah to the east, Maryamin to the northeast and Kafr Kamrah and Awj to the north. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Akakir had a population of 2,495 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Alawites.
Sabburah is a town in northern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, located east of Hama and 25 kilometers northeast of Salamiyah, on the western edge of the Syrian Desert. Nearby localities include Aqarib to the south, Mabujah to the southeast and Khunayfis and al-Saan to the northeast.
Al-Khalidiyah is a village in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, south of Hama. Nearby localities include Kafr Buhum to the southwest, Ayyubiyah to the south, Maarin al-Jabal to the southeast, al-Jinan to the east and Surayhin to the northeast. According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, al-Khalidiyah had a population of 4,740 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Sunni Muslims.
The Nizari state was a Shia Nizari Ismaili state founded by Hassan-i Sabbah after he took control of the Alamut Castle in 1090 AD, which marked the beginning of an era of Ismailism known as the "Alamut period". Their people were also known as the Assassins or Hashashins.
Al-Kafat is a Syrian village located in the Salamiyah Subdistrict of the Salamiyah District of the Hama Governorate. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), al-Kafat had a population of 1,893 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Ismailis.
Tall ad Dirrah is a Syrian village in the Salamiyah Subdistrict in Salamiyah District, located southeast of Hama. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Taldara had a population of 5,986 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Ismailis.
Al-Sa'an is a Syrian town located in the al-Sa'an Subdistrict in Salamiyah District, located in the Syrian Desert, 50 kilometers northeast of Salamiyah and northeast of Hama. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), al-Sa'an had a population of 3,360 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Ismailis.
Ba'amrah is a Syrian village located in the Ayn Halaqim Subdistrict of the Masyaf District in Hama Governorate. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Ba'amrah had a population of 508 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Alawites.
Aqir Zayti is a village in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Tartus Governorate, located in the Syrian Coastal Mountain Range, east of Tartus. The village of Khirbet al-Faras is located immediately south. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Aqir Zayti had a population of 783 in the 2004 census. Its inhabitants are predominantly Ismailis, who moved there after being forced out from the nearby fortress village of Khawabi in the early 20th century.
Jabal Kafraa is a mountain near Kafraa in the Hama Governorate in Syria. It has an elevation of 625 meters and is located near Jabal Zayn al-Abidin, it ranks as the 30th highest mountain in Hama and the 540th highest in Syria.
