Qaboun (, sometimes spelled Al-Kaboun or al-Qaboun) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

and neighbourhood in

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, located north-east of the city center, to the north of

Jobar Jobar () also Jawbar, Jober or Joubar, is a village on the outskirts of Damascus northeast of the old city walls. It contains the most venerated site for Syrian Jews, the 2,000-year-old Jobar Synagogue, named for the biblical prophet Elijah, a ...

district.

History

Qaboun name is derived from "Abouna" in

Syriac language The Syriac language ( ; ), also known natively in its spoken form in early Syriac literature as Edessan (), the Mesopotamian language () and Aramaic (), is an Aramaic#Eastern Middle Aramaic, Eastern Middle Aramaic dialect. Classical Syriac is ...

which means "column" or "the place where the water gathers", in reference to

Barada The Barada ( / ALA-LC: ''Baradā'') is the main river of Damascus, the capital city of Syria. Etymology The word "Barada" is thought to be derived from the word ''barid'', which means "cold" in Semitic languages. The ancient Greek name (), mean ...

river. In the 2004 census, it had a population of 89,974.Damascus governorate population 2004 census
/ref> In 2017, after the Qaboun offensive (2017), population estimates varied between 300 and 2,500 as a result of mass emigration. Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war, it was primarily controlled by the

rebels A rebel is a participant in a rebellion. Rebel or rebels may also refer to: People * Rebel (given name) * Rebel (surname) * Patriot (American Revolution), during the American Revolution * American Southerners, as a form of self-identification; ...

, but between 2014 and 2017 was under truce with the government. The situation has been described as a "siege". On 17 April 2015, the rebels (

Jaysh al-Islam Jaysh al-Islam (, meaning ''Army of Islam''), formerly known as Liwa al-Islam (, Brigade of Islam), is a coalition of Islamist rebel units involved in the Syrian Civil War. The group was part of the Free Syrian Army's Supreme Military Counc ...

and the

Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...

's First Brigade) launched a military campaign to expel the

Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

from the Barzeh, Qaboun, and Tishrin neighborhoods, which ended in success 3 days later. In May 2017, rebels were evacuated as the army regained control. It is estimated that around 2,300 people left at this time. In March 2022, authorities announced their plans to demolish the neighbourhood.

History

See also

References

Further reading