Abu Kamal ( ar, أَبُو كَمَال, ʾAbū Kamāl) or Al-Bukamal ( ar, ٱلْبُوكَمَال, al-Būkamāl) is a city on the

Euphrates The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers''). Originating in Turkey, the Eup ...

river in the Deir ez-Zor Governorate of eastern

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

near the border with Iraq. It is the administrative centre of the Abu Kamal District and the local subdistrict (Abu Kamal Subdistrict). Just to the south-east is the

Al-Qa'im border crossing Al-Qa'im border crossing ( ar, معبر القائم الحدودي) between Syria and Iraq is one of the major supply routes across the Middle East. It connects the town of Abu Kamal in Syria's Deir ez-Zor Governorate to the city of Husaybah, in ...

to the town of

Husaybah Husaybah ( ar, حصيبة) is a city on the Euphrates river in the Al-Qa'im District of Al-Anbar province in Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî ...

in the

Al-Qa'im District Al-Qa'im District () is a district in Al Anbar Governorate, Iraq, on the border with Syria. It is centred on the town of Al-Qa'im. The Euphrates river flows through it. At its western end, in the city of Husaybah, is the Al-Qa'im border cross ...

of Iraq's Al Anbar Governorate.

Etymology

When part of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, Abu Kamal was called ''kışla'', pronounced locally as "qashla", which is a Turkish word for "military barracks". This name "Qashla" is still used by some inhabitants of the area, especially by elderly villagers. The name "Al-Bukamal" () means "the family of Kamal", Kamal being the tribe that lives there, whereas the name "Abu Kamal" means "the father of Kamal".

History

In the 17th century, Abu Kamal was the seat of a

sanjak Sanjaks (liwāʾ) (plural form: alwiyāʾ) * Armenian: նահանգ (''nahang''; meaning "province") * Bulgarian: окръг (''okrǔg''; meaning "county", "province", or "region") * el, Διοίκησις (''dioikēsis'', meaning "province" ...

of the

in the

Rakka Eyalet ota, ایالت رقهEyalet-i Rakka , common_name = Rakka Eyalet , subdivision = Eyalet , nation = the Ottoman Empire , year_start = 1586 , year_end = 1864 , date_start ...

. It was a

kaza A kaza (, , , plural: , , ; ota, قضا, script=Arab, (; meaning 'borough') * bg, околия (; meaning 'district'); also Кааза * el, υποδιοίκησις () or (, which means 'borough' or 'municipality'); also () * lad, kaza , ...

(subdistrict) center within

Zor Sanjak The Sanjak of Zor ( tr, Deyr-i-Zor sancağı) was a sanjak of the Ottoman Empire, which was created in 1857. Some of its area was separated from the Baghdad Vilayet. Zor was sometimes mentioned as being part of the Aleppo Vilayet, The village and its subdistrict formed the center of the

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

Uqaydat tribe and was largely Sunni

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

, with the exception of a small Christian community originally from

Deir ez-Zor , population_urban = , population_density_urban_km2 = , population_density_urban_sq_mi = , population_blank1_title = Ethnicities , population_blank1 = , population_blank2_title = Religions , population_blank2 = ...

and

Mosul Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second larg ...

. At the beginning of the 20th century, it contained eighty houses, the residence of the ''

kaymakam Kaymakam, also known by many other romanizations, was a title used by various officials of the Ottoman Empire, including acting grand viziers, governors of provincial sanjaks, and administrators of district kazas. The title has been retained a ...

'' (kaza governor), a police station, a ferry, and had a population of about 500. The kaza of Abu Kamal in 1890 had a population of 15,000. Abu Kamal became part of the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon in 1921, and the French made it the seat of a large garrison. In 1946 it became part of independent

. Abu Kamal's position at the border of Syria and Iraq has made it an important commercial as well as political center. Abu Kamal is located near to Al-Qa'im, a crossing point for the

Iraqi insurgency Iraqi insurgency may refer to: * Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011), part of the Iraq War ** Iraqi insurgency (2003–2006), 2003–2006 phase of the Iraqi insurgency ** Iraqi civil war (2006–2008), multi-sided civil war in Iraq * Iraqi insurgency (20 ...

and the location of

Operation Steel Curtain Operation Steel Curtain (Arabic: الحجاب الفولاذي Al Hejab Elfulathi) was a military operation executed by coalition forces in early November 2005 to reduce the flow of foreign insurgents crossing the border and joining the Iraqi ...

in November, 2005. On 27 October 2008, during the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

, four US helicopters carried out a raid on the village of Sukkariyeh in Abu Kamal district. It was the first known raid inside Syria by the US. News reports indicate that at least seven people were killed, four of them children. The Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem stated that "Killing civilians in international law means a terrorist aggression."

Syrian Civil War

During the Syrian Civil War, in late July 2012, the Free Syrian Army (FSA) took over the town, along with its associated border post with

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. In early September 2012,

France 24 France 24 ( in French) is a French state-owned international news television network based in Paris. Its channels broadcast in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish and are aimed at the overseas market. Based in the Paris suburb of Issy-les-Mo ...

reported that the Hamdan military airport was under attack by FSA. On 16 November 2012, FSA took over the nearby Hamdan military airport, which was once used to transport farm produce, but was converted to a base for helicopters and military tanks. The capture of Hamdan meant that the Syrian Army forces now only held one air base in the province - the main military airport in

city.

ISIL takeover

Abu Kamal was captured by

ISIL An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

forces between late-June and early-July 2014 during a three-month offensive across Deir ez-Zor Governorate. On 3 July 2014, SOHR said that city of Mayadin, the second biggest town in Deir Ezzor province, was also "now under IS control, after Al-Nusra Front evacuated its headquarters there, and IS raised its banner". On 3 July 2014, all towns and villages on the route from Abu Kamal to Al-Bab, passing through the Raqqa province, were under Islamic State control. Owing to its distance from the frontline, the town would see little fighting between its capture by ISIL in 2014 and ISIL's retreat in 2017. During the lull in conflict, the town was the target of a failed opposition attack by the US-backed New Syrian Army in June 2016; the offensive lasted only a day and led to a total reversal of New Syrian Army advances to Abu Kamal. On October 14, 2017 the Syrian Arab Army took the city of Mayadin, located 80 kilometers from Abu Kamal. After that Abu Kamal was the only large city that remained under ISIL control. On October 25, the road Al Qaim – Abu Kamal – Mayadin – Deir ez-Zor was blocked after a series of airstrikes conducted by Russian Air Force. From 1 to 4 November 6 Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bombers conducted airstrikes on ISIL objects near Abu Kamal. On November 7 the SAA started operation to take Abu Kamal with support of allied forces, like the Iranian-backed Hezbollah and the Iranian Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC). On 9 November 2017, ISIL retreated from the town, leaving fighters dispersed in villages and small towns in the desert. Army spokesman Gen. Ali Mayhoub stated:

″The liberation of Abu Kamal is of great importance because it is a declaration of the fall of this group’s project in the region generally and the collapse of its supporters’ illusions to divide it, control large parts of the Syria-Iraq borders and secure supply routes between the two countries.″

One day later Commander of the Russian force grouping in Syria Colonel General Sergei Surovikin confirmed the retaking of Abu Kamal:

“Units of the 5th Assault Corps, assault groups of brigadier general Suheil and militias with support of Russian Air Force took part in liberating Abu Kamal. In the final stages of hostilities the Syrian Arab Army gained control over the Syrian-Iraqi border near the Euphrates River”.

However, on November 11 the city was recaptured by ISIL. The Syrian Army and its allies retook complete control of the city by 19 November. Concerns have been raised about what would happen to the village once ISIL was removed.

Iranian presence

Following the elimination of ISIS, Iranian-allied militias have occupied Abu Kamal and its countryside since late 2017. Since the end of 2017, the Iraqi

Popular Mobilization Forces The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) ( ar, الحشد الشعبي ''al-Ḥashd ash-Shaʿbī''), also known as the People's Mobilization Committee (PMC) and the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), is an Iraqi state-sponsored umbrella organization ...

, which are linked to the Iranian

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC; fa, سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی, Sepāh-e Pāsdārān-e Enghelāb-e Eslāmi, lit=Army of Guardians of the Islamic Revolution also Sepāh or Pasdaran for short) is a branch o ...

(IRGC), had control of the

al-Qa'im border crossing Al-Qa'im border crossing ( ar, معبر القائم الحدودي) between Syria and Iraq is one of the major supply routes across the Middle East. It connects the town of Abu Kamal in Syria's Deir ez-Zor Governorate to the city of Husaybah, in ...

, while Hezbollah and the Haidarion, Fatimion and Zeinabiyun militias had control of Mayadin, west of Abu Kamal, both on the south bank of the Euphrates River. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) had control of the north bank.Report: Five killed in missile strike on pro-Iranian militias in Syria
/ref>

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

reported on 4 September that a new “classified Iranian project”, the Imam Ali military base, was being constructed near Abu Kamal, which was confirmed by satellite images. On 30 September 2019, after eight years of closure, Syria and Iraq reopened the

between Abu Kamal and Al-Qa'im.

Climate

Abu Kamal has a

hot desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

(''BWh'') in the Köppen–Geiger climate classification system.

Notable people

Yusuf Zuayyin Yusuf Zuayyin (‎; 25 January 1931 – 10 January 2016) was a Syrian politician. A member of the Ba'ath Party, he served as Prime Minister of Syria in 1965 and again from 1966 to 1968. He was born in Abu Kamal Abu Kamal ( ar, أَبُ ...

twice Prime Minister of Syria. *

Sufian Allaw Sufian Allaw ( ar, سفيان العلاو; born 1944) was the former oil minister of Syria. Early life and education Allaw was born in Abu Kamal in Deir ez-Zor Governorate in 1944. He earned a degree in electrical and mechanical engineering fro ...

Oil minister for Syria. * Nawaf al-Fares Syrian ambassador to Iraq and defector. * Saddam al-Jamal An

Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

leader. File:Dura Abukamal.JPG,

Dura-Europos Dura-Europos, ; la, Dūra Eurōpus, ( el, Δούρα Ευρωπός, Doúra Evropós, ) was a Hellenistic, Parthian, and Roman border city built on an escarpment above the southwestern bank of the Euphrates river. It is located near the vil ...

File:Abukamal tent.jpg, A Bedouin tent at Abu Kamal File:Euph Abukamal.JPG, Sunset on the

File:Abukamal Mosque .jpg, The Great Mosque of Abu Kamal in evening

References

External links

Abu Kamal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bukamal Cities in Syria Populated places in Abu Kamal District Populated places on the Euphrates River