Harem حَارِم | |
|---|---|
 1930 aerial view of Harem and its castle | |
  Harem Location in Syria | |
| Coordinates:36°12′N36°31′E / 36.200°N 36.517°E /36.200; 36.517 | |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Idlib |
| District | Harem (district) |
| Subdistrict | Harem (subdistrict) |
| Control | Syrian transitional government |
| Elevation | 175 m (574 ft) |
| Population (2008) | |
• Total | 21,934 |
Harem orHarim (Arabic:حَارِم,romanized: Ḥārim, alsoḤāram), is aSyriancity within theIdlib Governorate. It has an altitude of 160 meters and a population of 21,934. Harem is situated on theborder with Turkey, 55 km west ofAleppo.[1]
The city lies along the route betweenAntioch andAleppo, and has existed since theByzantine era.[1]
There is an important castle in Harem built in a unique military style. The castle was originally Byzantine and was built byNikephoros II Phokas shortly after 959, it then fell to the Arabs and then to theSeljuk Turks.[1]
In 1097, it was taken by theCrusaders, who kept it for the next forty years, except for a short time in 1098 when it was taken by the Muslim Arabs. The city stands on the northern spur of the Jebel Talat, which forms the east bank of the Orontes with superb views of the Iron Bridge and the Antioch-Aleppo road, making it a high-value position of strategic interest. AfterNur al-Din's victory overRaymond of Poitiers at theBattle of Inab, the castle fell to Muslim forces in 1149.[2] It was taken back by the Crusaders underBaldwin III in 1158.[3] However, Nur al-Din besieged the castle once more in 1164. When the Crusaders attempted to relieve the siege, Nur al-Din defeated them decisively at theBattle of Harim, capturing many of the Christian leadership includingRaymond III of Tripoli,Bohemond III of Antioch,Hugh VIII of Lusignan, andJoscelin III of Edessa.[4] After this, the castle remained in Muslim hands for the remainder of the Crusader period, thoughCount Philip I of Flanders unsuccessfully attempted to recapture it one last time during his pilgrimage to the east in 1177.[5] The Crusader castle was rebuilt by the son ofSaladin,Malik Al Zaher Ghazi.[1]
When theMongols led byHulagu Khan invaded in 1260, much of Harem was destroyed including its castle, and its population was massacred.[6] What is left of the castle dates back to the Muslim-Crusader wars between 1164 and 1268.[1]
In the early 1800s, the Barmada family rebuild Harem[clarification needed] after it was completely destroyed by the Mongols in the 13th century.[7]
The landlords[clarification needed] of Harem between the 1800s until 1963 belonged to four main families: Barmada, Kayali, Al-Kikhia and Hananu.[clarification needed]
In 1980, the Syrian government confiscated all the properties and lands of Barmada family.
During theSyrian Civil War, the town remained loyal to the Syrian government led byBashar al-Assad before surrendering to theFree Syrian Army in a two-month longbattle in late 2012. By late 2014, Harem had become the local headquarters for the Islamistal-Nusra Front.[8]
On 24 January 2016,Ahrar ash-Sham expelled al-Nusra Front from Harem, after tensions between the two groups boiled over. Subsequent clashes erupted in the nearby town ofSalqin.[9]
On 23 October 2025, a ceasefire was agreed between theSyrian Armed Forces andFirqat al-Ghuraba, after the latter's camp was sieged the day before in the city.[10]
In early February 2023,an earthquake devastated southern Turkey and adjacent Northern Syria. Harem was particularly hard-hit, with hundreds killed, and received little to no international aid.[11][12]
Due to Harem being very close to Aleppo, the climate is very similar.Below is the climate table for Aleppo, because there is no climate data concerning Harem.
| Climate data for Harem | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 10 (50) | 13 (55) | 18 (64) | 24 (75) | 29 (84) | 34 (93) | 36 (97) | 36 (97) | 33 (91) | 27 (81) | 19 (66) | 12 (54) | 24 (76) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1 (34) | 3 (37) | 4 (39) | 9 (48) | 13 (55) | 17 (63) | 21 (70) | 21 (70) | 16 (61) | 12 (54) | 7 (45) | 3 (37) | 11 (51) |
| Average rainy days | 11 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 10 | 56 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 124 | 168 | 217 | 240 | 341 | 390 | 403 | 372 | 330 | 279 | 210 | 124 | 3,198 |
| Source: BBC Weather[13] | |||||||||||||
