Arzah

Arzah أرزة الضبعة Arzah
Village
Arzah Location in Syria
Coordinates: 35°10′28″N 36°41′51″E / 35.17444°N 36.69750°E / 35.17444; 36.69750
Country	Syria
Governorate	Hama
District	Hama
Subdistrict	Hama
Population  (2004)
• Total	1,280
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
City Qrya Pcode	C2962

Arzah (Arabic: أرزة); also spelled Arze or Arzeh; also known as al-Arzah al-Dabaa (Arabic: أرزة الضبعة)

is a Syrian village located in the Subdistrict of the Hama District in the Hama Governorate. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Arzah had a population of 1,280 in the 2004 census.^[1] Its inhabitants were predominantly Alawites.^[2]

10–12 Arzah villagers were killed in a sectarian massacre in February 2025 by Saraya Ansar al-Sunnah.^[3][4]

The village was subjected to another massacre in March 2025.^[5] As a result of this massacre, the native Alawite population of the village was expelled, and it has now been settled by Sunnis from the nearby town of Khattab.^[6]

References

1. "General Census of Population 2004".
2. "Alawites prepare as IS, Jabhat al-Nusra close in on regime areas". Al-Monitor. Al-Monitor. 26 August 2014. Archived from the original on 30 August 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2015.
3. Ganzeveld, Annika; Reddy, Ria; Campa, Kelly; Moore, Johanna; Moorman, Carolyn; Rezaei, Ben; Braverman, Alexandra; Borens, Avery; Carter, Brian (14 February 2025). "Iran Update, February 14, 2025". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 14 March 2025.
4. "Gunmen kill 10 in Syria village 'massacre': Monitor". Al Arabiya. 1 February 2025. Retrieved 15 March 2025.
5. "'They killed him in cold blood': the cycle of revenge in north-west Syria". The Guardian. 15 March 2025. Retrieved 15 March 2025.
6. Al-Tamimi, Aymenn Jawad (18 July 2025). "Photo Essay: The Former Alawite Village of Arza in Hama Countryside". www.aymennaltamimi.com. Retrieved 15 August 2025.