A noria is a machine for lifting water into a small aqueduct for the purpose of irrigation. Hama is the location of the historical city of Hamath. In 1982 it was the scene of the worst massacre in modern Arab history. President Hafaz al-Assad ordered his brother Rifaat al-Assad to quell a Sunni Islamist revolt in the city. An estimated 25,000 to 30,000 people were massacred.