When the Ottomans left Deir ez-Zor, Ayyash Al-Haj contributed to protecting the people of Deir ez-Zor from the chaos and the absence of security left by the absence of the Ottoman authority. He formed a local government with the dignitaries of Deir ez-Zor, headed by his cousin from the Abu Obaid clan, Fadel Al-Aboud in 1918.[1]