Large stone ruins in the vicinity, including a rectangular-shaped building, attest to the antiquity of the site. The area features
basaltic mounds called
rujm, some of which rise to an elevation of 24–30 feet. Atop the
rujm are circles and squares up to 10 feet wide carved into the basaltic rock. Near Jamla, in the
Ruqqad riverbed, lies the archaeological site of Tel ed-Dra', where a fragment depicting a winged deity, possibly
Victoria, was discovered in the early 20th century. Previously, the site was mistakenly identified as the location of the ancient Jewish town of
Gamla, known for its siege during the
First Jewish–Roman War, due to the similarity in name. This identification was later refuted when Gamla's true location was discovered elsewhere. In the late 19th-century Jamla was described by
Gottlieb Schumacher as an impoverished village of 36 hut-like houses and a population of 160 Muslims. Arable land was relatively scarce, although there was significant pasture areas to the south. Figs and vegetables were cultivated by the residents in fields to the north and the southwest. There was an abundant supply of water deriving from the Ain Hamatah spring which fed a stream that flowed around the village and irrigated its crops.
Civil war In March 2013, during the
Syrian civil war, the
Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade kidnapped 21 Filipino
United Nations peacekeepers patrolling the ceasefire line between Syria and the
Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The Brigade was reportedly in control of the village itself, but intense clashes were occurring around it. The peacekeepers were accused of cooperating with the Syrian authorities. The rebels demanded that the
Syrian Army withdraw from the vicinity of Jamla in return for their release. They were freed after several days. The town remained under the control of the Brigade. On 15 November 2015, the head of the brigade, Muhammad "Abu Ali" al-Baridi and five others, were killed in a bomb blast in Jamla; Al-Nusra Front claimed responsibility for the attack. The Brigade merged with the ISIL-affiliated
Khalid ibn al-Walid Army, and maintained control of the city through 2016 and 2017. On 28 July 2018, the Syrian army recaptured Jamla. On 21 June 2022, two Syrian soldiers were killed by an IED explosion on a road near the village.
2024 invasion by Israel In December 2024, during the
2024 Israeli invasion of Syria, the IDF occupied Jamla and
Ma'ariya, and opened fire on Syrian protesters. ==References==