Hama

For weeks now, the city of Hama has been a focal point of the anti-government uprising in Syria. The city is currently surrounded by the military, and virtually no Western journalists have been able to get in. Hama has a bloody recent history – it was the scene of an anti-goverment uprising in the early 80s that was brutally suppressed by then president Hafez al-Assad, the current president’s father.

In March 2009 I visited Hama as a tourist. It’s a lovely, verdant town with a beautiful historic center. Here are a few photos from that trip.