He continued as the emir of al-Rahba and the eastern portion of the Mirdasid realm after losing Aleppo to his nephew Mahmud ibn Nasr.
[1] Both Salih and Tarud belonged to the Banu Kilab, a large Arab tribe that dominated northern Syria and the western Jazira in the 11th century.
[1] After Nasr's death in 1038, the Fatimid Caliphate's governor in Syria, Anushtakin al-Dizbari, conquered Aleppo and proceeded to take over the entire Mirdasid emirate, seizing Balis and Manbij but failing to capture al-Rahba.
[1] He allied with the Fatimids and handed over control of al-Rahba to the pro-Fatimid general Arslan al-Basasiri so that the latter could use it as a launching point to invade Abbasid Iraq.
[4] At the time of Atiyya's capture of al-Rahba, Thimal had given up control of Aleppo to the Fatimids in exchange for the governorship of the coastal districts of Acre, Beirut and Jubayl.
[1] The Banu Kilab insisted on the Mirdasids’ return to Aleppo and entrusted Atiyya's nephew Mahmud ibn Nasr with taking back the city.
[6] Instead, a truce was arbitrated giving Atiyya control of Aleppo and the eastern half of the emirate stretching from al-Rahba in the southeast to Qinnasrin in the northwest and northward to Azaz.
[6] Atiyya rejected the division of the Mirdasid emirate and brought in 1,000 Turkmen archers led by their prince, Ibn Khan, to assist him against Mahmud and his supporters and extract more concessions from them.
[6] Mahmud entered Aleppo and a new arrangement was reached that gave Atiyya control of the eastern emirate, i.e. the western Jazira including al-Rahba, while Mahmud controlled the western emirate including Aleppo, Jund Qinnasrin (Chalcis District) and a significant portion of Jund Hims (Homs District).
[8] The Byzantines supported Atiyya's activities in the aftermath of their defeat at the Battle of Manzikert and their aim was to weaken or expel the Turkmen troops of the emirate.