11 Facts About Tartus

Until the 1970s, Tartus was under the governance of Latakia Governorate, then it became a separate governorate.

At the time of the Crusades, Antaradus, by then called Tartus or Tortosa, was a Latin Church diocese, whose bishop held the titles of Aradus and Maraclea.

Tartus hosted the Masjid of Khadijah, the wife of Muhammad.

On May 23, 2016, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for three suicide bombings at a bus station in Tartus, which had remained largely unaffected since the Syrian Civil War began in 2011.

Tartus occupies most of the coastal plain, surrounded to the east by mountains composed mainly of limestone and, in certain places around the town of Souda, basalt.

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Tartus is known for its relatively mild weather and high precipitation compared to inland Syria.

Tartus is an important trade center in Syria and has one of the two main ports of the country on the Mediterranean.

Tartus is a favorite destination for tourists and a beautiful modern city with its buildings, markets, modern resorts, tourist facilities and port.

Tartus is the last Russian military base outside the former Soviet Union, and its only Mediterranean fueling spot, sparing Russia's warships the trip back to their Black Sea bases through straits in Turkey, a NATO member.

Tartus is the home city of only one sports club: Al-Sahel SC, founded in 1971.

Outlying town of Al Hamidiyah just south of Tartus is notable for having a Greek-speaking population of about 3, 000 who are the descendants of Ottoman Greek Muslims from the island of Crete but usually confusingly referred to as Cretan Turks.