Al-Ziyarah has been identified as the ancient Aramaean city of "Ziara", which was part of the Hamath kingdom.[1]
The name al-Ziyarah is Arabic for "visiting place." Al-Ziyarah receives its name from a double-domed shrine located in the town.[3] The dome is white and surrounded by oak trees.[4] It has a view over the surrounding plain and the Nusayriyah Mountain range.[3]
Prior to 1960 the nahiyah of al-Ziyarah was part of the Idlib Governorate, after which it became a part of the Hama Governorate.[5] In 1970 the average household in al-Ziyarah consisted of nearly nine members.[6] An irrigation project for 17,400 hectares in the al-Ziyarah area was started in 1990.[7] The project was completed with the construction of the Zeyzoun Dam in 1995. On 4 June 2002 the dam collapsed causing mass flooding in the area. Five towns, including al-Ziyarah, saw hundreds of homes either destroyed or severely damaged, prompting the Syrian government to request urgent international aid. Out of a total of ten people killed, five, including two women, two children and an employee of the dam, were residents of al-Ziyarah.[8]
On 5 November 2012, during the ongoing Syrian Civil War between the Syrian government and opposition rebels, a car bomb exploded outside a government-run development agency in al-Ziyarah. While state media claimed two people were killed and 10 injured, opposition activists claimed the attack left 50 Syrian soldiers and pro-government militiamen dead.[9]
