Interactive Map: A Valley At War

The Orontes river valley tells the story of Syria.  Here, neighbor is fighting neighbor.

For generations, the Alawites and Sunnis in the valley had lived peacefully, even during the first year of the Syrian uprising. But as the revolution entered its second year, divisions arose.

Today, on one side of the Orontes river, the rebel Free Syrian Army holds Sunni villages whose residents are calling for the fall of President Bashar al-Assad. On the other side, less than a mile away, villagers from Assad’s Alawite minority remain fiercely loyal to the government and gladly host army checkpoints that fire shells and mortars into neighboring Sunni villages. This map tells the story of the people who live and fight on both sides of the frontline, neighbors now divided by religion, ideology and the river that runs between them.

Data on the sectarian makeup of the Orontes River valley was collected by Syria consultant researcher and Harvard graduate student Patrick Johnson through field interviews.