Hama Governorate
Hama Governorate ( / ALA-LC: "Muḥāfaẓat Ḥamā") is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in western-central Syria, bordering Idlib and Aleppo Governorates to the south, Raqqa Governorate to the west, Homs Governorate to the north, and Tartus and Latakia Governorate to the east. It is the only Governorate (excluding Damascus) that does not border a foreign country. Measures of its area vary from 8,844 km to 8,883 km, with its capital being the city of Hama. History. Modern Syria. Hama has historically been a centre of opposition to the Assad regime, and it was  the centre of an uprising in the late 1970s to the early 1980s that resulted in the 1982 Hama massacre. Syrian Civil War. The city was one of several that saw anti-Assad protests in 2011, the violent suppression of which ultimately led to the outbreak of civil war. Despite this, for the most part the governorate has stayed under the Syrian Government's control, with exceptions of parts of the north-west in the early years of the conflict. The eastern desert regions of the governorate fell under the control of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant by  2016, but by September 2017 the Syrian Army had managed to oust them. Geography. The western regions of the governorate are part of the Syrian Coastal Mountain Range (Nusayriyah Mountains), running north to south. Roughly parallel with the mountains to the east is the Al-Ghab Plain, with the Orontes river flowing through it, Hama city lies on this river. The central and eastern regions of the governorate consists of flatter desert terrain. Settlements. The provincial capital is Hama; other major settlements include Akakir, Al-Hamraa, Al Qastal, Al-Saan, Aqarib as Safi, At Tammazah, Ithriya, Kafr Buhum, Karnaz, Mahardah , Masyaf, Murak, Qalaat al-Madiq, Qasr Ibn Wardan, Sabburah, Salamiyah, Shaykh Hilal, Shaytalun, Suran and Tayyibat at Turki. Districts. The governorate is divided into five districts (manatiq). The districts are further divided into 22 sub-districts (nawahi): Economy. Hama Governorate is a major agricultural and industrial center of Syria. About 3,680 square kilometers of land are used for agriculture, which is about a third of the total area of ​​the province. Every year, more than half of all agricultural crops (especially potatoes and pistachios) from all over Syria are produced here. Cattle breeding is also widespread here. Demographics. As per  the 2004 Syrian census the population was 1,385,000. A 2011 UNOCHA estimate put the population at 1,628,000, though this has likely changed since the start of the war. Sunni Muslims form the majority at 61%, followed by Alawites (19%), Ismailis (12%), Christian (7%) and Shi'ite Muslims (1%).