sentences:  In 1856, the sheikhs of the Bani Amer, Abu Fakhr, Abu Assaf, Al Hanaydi and Al Azzam clans petitioned the Ottoman governor of Damascus to appoint Wakil as "first sheikh" of Jabal Hauran in their bid to stem al-Atrash power.The following year, Ismail al-Atrash captured the Al Hamdan's secondary village, 'Ira, and drove out its sheikh Hazza al-Hamdan, Wakid's brother.By 1860, the Al Hamdan lost their position of power in Jabal Hauran and became largely dependent on the more powerful Bani Amer.