Tell Rifaat

Tell Rifaat تل رفعت
Town
Tell Rifaat Location of Tell Rifaat in Syria
Coordinates: 36°28′24″N 37°05′50″E / 36.4733°N 37.0972°E / 36.4733; 37.0972Coordinates: 36°28′24″N 37°05′50″E / 36.4733°N 37.0972°E / 36.4733; 37.0972
Country	Syria
Governorate	Aleppo
District	Azaz
Subdistrict	Tell Rifaat
Elevation	457 m (1,499 ft)
Population (2004)[1]	20,514
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Geocode	C1621

Tell Rifaat (Arabic: تل رفعت‎‎, also spelled Tel Rifaat, Tel Rif'at or Tal Rifaat) is a town in northern Aleppo Governorate, northwestern Syria. Located roughly 40 kilometres (25 mi) north of Aleppo, the town is the administrative center of Nahiya Tell Rifaat. Nearby localities include A'zaz to the north, Mare' to the east, Kafr Naya to the south, Deir Jamal and Aqiba to the southwest and Ibbin Samaan to the west. In the 2004 census, Tell Rifaat had a population of 20,514.^[1]

Tell Rifaat is the administrative center of Nahiya Tell Rifaat of the Azaz District.

During the ongoing Syrian Civil War, Tell Rifaat was captured by the Syrian Democratic Forces on 16 February 2016 and subsequently incorporated into the administration of Shahba region within the Federation of Northern Syria - Rojava framework. During the fights, all three health facilities of the town were damaged by missiles.^[2]

History

Tell Rifaat has been inhabited since the Iron Age when it was known as "Arpad."^[3] It became the capital of the north Syrian Aramaean state of Bit Agusi established by Gus of Yahan in the 9th-century BCE.^[3] Bit Agusi stretched from the A'zaz area in the north to Hamath in the south.^[4]

Arpad later became a major vassal city of the Kingdom of Urartu. In 743 BCE, during the Urartu-Assyria War, the Neo-Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser II laid siege to Arpad following the defeat of the Urartuan army of Sarduri II at Samsat. The siege ended with the Assyrian capture of the city in 743 BCE.^[5] Afterward Arpad served a provincial capital.^[6] The remains of Arpad's walls are still preserved in Tell Rifaat to the height of 8 meters.^[7]

A settlement existed on the modern-day site of Tell Rifaat during the Seleucid period (301 BCE-63 BCE). A hoard of coins from this period was discovered in 1967.^[8] After the nearby Tell Aran, Tell Rifaat is the largest tell in the Jabal Semʻān region.^[9]

Syrian Civil War

For a period during the ongoing Syrian uprising which began in mid-2011, Tell Rifaat came under siege by Syrian security forces. Until the FSA gained control of the city, residents were unable to receive food supplies, including bread, from Aleppo.^[10]

In the early summer of 2012, Syrian government authorities withdrew from Tell Rifaat and were replaced by a council made up of local Islamic scholars, judges and former Syrian Army officers, ruling in the basis of sharia.^[11] The city was under the authority of the Free Syrian Army (FSA).^[11] Since its capture by the FSA, opposition rebels have been transporting flour for bread from Turkey to Tell Rifaat.^[10] The town was under control of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, until the group retreated from West Aleppo.^[12]

On 8 August 2012 Tell Rifaat was bombed by the Syrian Air Force, resulting in the deaths of six people, all members of the Blaw family.^[13] Opposition activists based in Aleppo claimed that Syrian Army forces were attempting to cut off the FSA's transport route between Tell Rifaat and Aleppo.^[14]

The town was under the control of Liwa al-Fatah of the Islamic Front.^[15]

On 15 February 2016, the town was captured by the Syrian Democratic Forces.^[16] Russian airstrikes, which preceded the Kurdish assault, forced the overwhelming majority of the population to escape.^[17]

References

Bibliography

Aleppo Governorate
Capital: Aleppo
District of Jabal Sem‘ān‎ Aleppo Abtin Anadan Babis Banis Barnah Barqum Bawabiyah Darat Izza Fah al-Farafirah Haddadin al-Hader Humayrah Hayyan Hur Huraytan al-Hutah Huweir al-Iss Injarah al-Iss Jazraya Jubb Kas Kafr Hamrah Kafr Saghir Khan Tuman Maarat al-Antiq Maratat al-Muslimiyah Maryamin al-Mintar al-Muslimiyah al-Muslimiyah al-Shamaliyah Qaras Qibtan al-Jabal al-Sakhriyah Shaykh Najjar Taqad Tell al-Daman Tell Hidyah Tell Shuayr Samaan Tell Shughayb al-Wadihi Yaqid al-Adas Zammar al-Zirbah Zitan
Azaz District Ablah Ahras Azaz Akhtarin Aq Burhan Bahwartah Baraghida Baruza Bayanoun Bel Dabiq Deir Jamal Dudyan Duwaybiq Fafin al-Fayruziyah Ghaytun Ghurur Hawar Kilis Herbel Ihtaimlat Jarez al-Judaydah Ka'ibah Kadrish Kafra Kafr Burayshah Kafr Kalbin Kafr Khasher Kafr Naseh Kafr Naya Kafr Shoush Kaljibrin Ma'arin Ma'arat Umm Hawsh al-Malikiyah Maraanaz Mare' Mayer Menagh Murayghil Naddah Nayarah Nubl Qabtan Qar Kalbin Rael Ratyan al-Salameh Sawran Shamarikh Shamarin Shaykh Issa Shuwayrin Sijaraz Sunbul Taanah Tal'ar Gharbi Tal'ar Sharqi Talalin Tall Battal Tall Tanah Tat Hims Tatiyah Tell Jabin Tell Qarah Tell Rifaat Tulayl ash-Sham Turkman Bareh al-Yaarubiyah Yahmul al-Yamamah Krum Az-Zahiriyah al-Zahraa Zayzafun Ziadiyah
Afrin District Afrin Ain Dara Aqiba Awlad al-Arab Barad Baselhaya Basouta Beit Adin Bulbul Burj Abdullah Burj Haider Darmashkanli Deir Ballut Fafertin Jalbul Jalmah Jindires Inab Kafr Safra Kimar Karzahayel Maabatli Maryamin Maydan Ikbis Qatma Rajo Sharran Shaykh al-Hadid
Atarib District Atarib al-Abzamo Batibo al-Jinah Ibbin Samaan Kafr Halab Kafr Karmin Kafr Naha Kafr Nasih al-Atarib Kafr Nuran Maarat Atarib Awayjil al-Sahharah al-Shaykh Ali Urum al-Kubra Urum al-Sughra
Ayn al-Arab District Ayn al-Arab al-Farazdaq al-Haqel Jaadat al-Samaawat al-Jalbiyah Jubb Faraj Kabir Mil Qibbah Qinayah Ramilah Ras al-Ayn Qibli Sarrin Shuyukh Fawqani Shuyukh Tahtani Tell Abyad Tahtani
Al-Bab District al-Bab Ameriyeh Arima Bizaah al-Burj Haddabat Haji Kusa Hezwan Maran Qabbasin al-Rai Sosyan Tedef Tell Rahal Al-Waqf
Dayr Hafir District Dayr Hafir Humaymah Kabirah al-Jabbul Kuwayris Sharqi Mazburah al-Raa'i Rasm al-Abed Rasm Harmil al-Imam Shaykh Ahmad Tell Ayoub
Jarabulus District Jarabulus Ayn al-Bayda Amarnah Arab Azzah Balaban al-Bir Fawqani al-Bir Tahtani Dabis Ghandoura al-Hajaliah al-Haluwaniyah Haymar al-Jamel Jarabulus Tahtani Fursan Lilawa Marma al-Hajar Mazaalah Qandariyah Qebbet al-Turkmen Qirq Maghar al-Suwaydah Yusuf Bayk
Manbij District Manbij Abu Kahf Abu Qilqil Arab Hassan Kabir Awsajli Kabir Dakhirah Dandaniya Hamir Labidah Hayyah Kabirah Jubb Hamza Al-Khafsah Khan al-Humr al-Maamurah al-Mahsanah Khafsah Maskanah Mallah Mujammaa Huttin al-Nasiriyah Fawqani Qashlat Yusef Basha Ras al-Ayn al-Bumane' Saan al-Ghazal al-Tadamon Talhuthan Tell Aswad Tell Akhdar al-Zahirah Zunqul
Al-Safira District al-Safira Abu Jurayn al-Safirah Aqrabah Banan al-Hajib Hawwaz Khanasir Qulayaa Rasm Al-Nafl al-Samiriyah Tat Tell Aran Tell Hasil Zira'ah

Rojava articles
History	Syrian Civil War Rojava conflict History of human rights in Rojava Historic Background of Rojava History of the Kurds History of the Assyrians Archeological Tell Halaf Tell Barri Tell Brak Hamoukar Urkesh Chagar Bazar Tell Arbid Tell Leilan Carchemish Tell Taban Dūr-Katlimmu
Geography	Subdivisions Jazira Canton Kobanî Canton Afrin Canton Shahba region Towns Al-Hasakah Al-Qamishli Manbij Kobanî Afrin Ras al-Ayn Amuda Al-Malikiyah Tell Rifaat Al-Qahtaniyah Al-Shaddadah Al-Muabbada Tell Abyad Al-Sabaa wa Arbain Jandairis Al-Manajir Qabasin Kurd Mountains Khabur River
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