Ib'al was the name used byEbla in the 24th century BC to indicate a confederation of tribes occupying the steppic region south of Ebla;[1] the region included small villages and towns.[2]Qatna could have been one of the urban centers in the region.[3]
Ebla andMari were engaged in a long war and Ib'al was drawn into;[1] during the reign of the Eblaite kingIsar-Damu, repeated campaigns over the course of four years were aimed at the confederation and ended with the Ib'al defeat.[4] Following the war with Ebla, Ib'al became an Eblaite ally and acted as such during a campaign against Mari.[4] Ib'al maintained a peaceful relation with Ebla until the latter collapse,[4] and the Ebla archive mentions the names of seven of its sheikhs.[5]
Castel, Corinne (2008). "Al-Rawda. A town in the Steppe (Central Syria, Early Bronze Age IV)". In Kühne, Hartmut; Czichon, Rainer Maria; Kreppner, Florian Janoscha (eds.).Proceedings of the 4th International Congress of the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East, 29 March - 3 April 2004, Freie Universität Berlin. Vol. 2. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag.ISBN978-3-447-05757-8.
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