Mountain Al-Bashan الباشان Mountain Al-Bashan | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of the Suwayda city, October 2011 | |
  Mountain Al-Bashan Location of Suwayda within Syria Show map of Syria Mountain Al-Bashan Mountain Al-Bashan (Eastern Mediterranean) Show map of Eastern Mediterranean | |
| Coordinates:32°42′45″N36°34′00″E / 32.71250°N 36.56667°E /32.71250; 36.56667 | |
| Grid position | 296/235 |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Suwayda |
| District | Al-Bashan |
| Subdistrict | Mountain Al-Bashan |
| Control |  Supreme Legal Committee in Suwayda |
| Government | |
| • Head of Security file in Suwayda city[3] | Abu Salman Hekmat Al-Hijri(de jure)[2] |
| Elevation | 3,540 ft (1,080 m) |
| Population (2004 census) | |
• City | 73,641[1] |
| • Metro | 147,146 |
| Demonym(s) | Arabic:سويداوي,romanized: Suwaydāwi |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Area code | 16 |
| Geocode | C6147 |
| Climate | Csa |
Suwayda (Arabic:الباشان,romanized: Al-Bashan), also spelledSweida, is a mainlyDruze city located in southernSyria, close to theborder with Jordan, with smallChristian andSunni MuslimBedouin minorities.[4]
It is the capital ofSuwayda Governorate, one of Syria's 14governorates, bordering Jordan in the South,Daraa Governorate in the West andRif Dimashq Governorate in the north and east.
The city is sometimes referred to as "Little Venezuela" due to the city's influx of affluentVenezuelan Syrian immigrants.[5] Many of them are descendants of Suwayda natives who emigrated toVenezuela in the nineteenth century; upon returning, they brought with them the Spanish language and elements of South American culture.[6][7][8]
According to the 2004 census conducted by Syria'sCentral Bureau of Statistics, Suwayda had a population of 73,641.[9]
The city was founded by theNabataeans asSuada. It became known asDionysias Soada (Ancient Greek:Διονῡσιάς) in theHellenistic period and theRoman Empire, for the godDionysus, patron ofwine – the city is situated in a famous ancient wine-producing region.
The nameDionysias replaced the former Nabataean name in 149 AD after Nabataean influence decreased and then concentrated towards the south, as a result of the then acceleratingHellenization ofCoele-Syria.
Dionysias was a part of the Romanprovince ofArabia Petraea, and received the rights ofcivitas during the reign ofCommodus between 180 and 185.
Dionysus was worshipped in the same Nabatean temple dedicated toDushara. This practice of associating the worship of local and Hellenic gods was common in Hellenistic Syria.
This name remained in use during theByzantine Empire, when the town was under the influence of theGhassanids. Dionysias then was adiocese with asuffragan bishop fromBosra. It was mentioned in theSynecdemus ofHierocles. After theearly Muslim conquests, the city was conquered by theRashidun Caliphate of theArabs in 629 and became atitular see.[10]
Yaqut al-Hamawi noted in the 1220s that As Suwaida was "a village of theHauran Province".[11]
In 1516, the city and the adjoining region was conquered from theMamluk Sultanate by theOttoman Empire. In 1596 Suwayda appeared under the name ofMajdal Sawda in theOttomantax registers as part of thenahiya (subdistrict) of Bani Nasiyya of theHauran Sanjak. It had a population of 5 households and 5 bachelors, allMuslim. The villagers paid a fixed tax rate of 20% on various agricultural products, including wheat, barley, summer crops, goats and/or beehives, in addition to "occasional revenues"; a total of 6,125akçe. 3/4 of the revenue went to awaqf.[12]
In recent times Dionysias was identified as Suwayda byWilliam Waddington.
In the 19th century, visitors recorded the now-destroyedTomb of Hamrath, an elaborate late Hellenistic mausoleum dating from the 1st century BCE.[13]
On 28 October 2012, security forces launched a campaign of mass arrests in the city.[14]
On 25 July 2018, the city was rocked by a string of terrorist attacks. A group of at least 56ISIS-affiliated attackers entered the city and initiated a series of gunfights andsuicide bombings killing 246 people, the vast majority of them civilians. Many of the terrorists were reported killed during the attack, bringing the total death toll to at least 302 people.[15] Forty-two Druze residents between the ages of 7 and 60 were kidnapped by ISIS and held captive. One was executed bringing the total in captivity to 41.[16]
On 7 June 2020, anti-government protests erupted in the city due to the deteriorating economic situation. Protesters demanded the resignation of PresidentBashar al-Assad for the first time since 2015.[17][18] As a result of the protests, Prime MinisterImad Khamis was sacked on 11 June and replaced byHussein Arnous.[19]
In February 2022, hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Sweida to decry corruption and worsening living standards.[20]
In August 2023, thousands of protestorstook to the streets to decry worsening economic conditions and demanding the departure of Syrian President Bashar al Assad.[21]
During theSouthern Syria offensive, Suwayda was captured by theSyrian opposition on 7 December 2024.[22] On 18 December 2024, a delegation of theSyrian transitional government arrived at the city to meet with the spiritual leader of the Druze.[23]
In July 2025, heavy fighting broke out betweenDruze andBedouin in Suweida, killing dozens.[24] As of July 19, 2025 over 600 Druze were reported dead. The Syrian government deployed regular soldiers and Interior Ministry units there. According to Israeli officials, this was done to crack down on the Druze minority.[25]
TheIDF attackedSyrian Armed Forces vehicles from the air and with URVs in order to prevent their arrival to the area. In a response, Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu and Defense MinisterIsrael Katz cited the need to protect the Druze religious minority due to their close ties toIsraeli Druze as well as assuring the security of Israel's borders by preventing the deployment of weaponry and Syrian military forces in the area.[26]
On September 21, 2025,Ayoub Kara, an ethnic Druze former member of theIsraeliKnesset, declared Suwayda an independent country, seceded from Syria.[27]
Suwayda's climate is warm, dry and temperate, with no rainfall in the summer months.This location is classified asBSk byKöppen and Geiger. The average temperature is 15.5 °C. About 323 mm of precipitation falls annually.
| Climate data for Suwayda, elevation 997 m (3,271 ft) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 11.1 (52.0) | 12.1 (53.8) | 15.1 (59.2) | 20.2 (68.4) | 25.6 (78.1) | 29.5 (85.1) | 30.6 (87.1) | 31.2 (88.2) | 29.5 (85.1) | 25.8 (78.4) | 19.7 (67.5) | 13.3 (55.9) | 22.0 (71.6) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 7.0 (44.6) | 7.8 (46.0) | 10.3 (50.5) | 14.3 (57.7) | 18.5 (65.3) | 21.7 (71.1) | 23.0 (73.4) | 23.5 (74.3) | 21.8 (71.2) | 19.2 (66.6) | 14.6 (58.3) | 9.1 (48.4) | 15.9 (60.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 3.0 (37.4) | 3.2 (37.8) | 5.5 (41.9) | 8.3 (46.9) | 11.5 (52.7) | 14.1 (57.4) | 15.3 (59.5) | 15.8 (60.4) | 14.3 (57.7) | 12.5 (54.5) | 9.3 (48.7) | 5.0 (41.0) | 9.8 (49.7) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 78 (3.1) | 82 (3.2) | 68 (2.7) | 28 (1.1) | 8 (0.3) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 2 (0.1) | 9 (0.4) | 30 (1.2) | 59 (2.3) | 364 (14.4) |
| Source:FAO[28] | |||||||||||||
Suwayda is divided into 10 neighbourhoods:[29]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 43,414 | — |
| 2004 | 73,641 | +69.6% |
The city had a population of 73,641 in the 2004 census.[29]
The inhabitants of the city are mainlyDruze, with smallChristian (mostlyGreek Orthodox) andSunni Muslim Bedouin minorities.
The Sunni Bedouins primarily reside on the northern and eastern outskirts of the city, in the areas of al-Maqwas, al-Haroubi, al-Mashoureb, Rajem az-Zaytoun, ad-Diyatha, and ash-Shaqrawiyah.
In 2011, theMelkite Greek Catholic Church had approximately 2,300 believers in Suwayda.[30]
Many archeological sites can be found in the old part of the city:
The city has many ancient reservoirs, towers and old Roman houses that are still inhabited by locals today.
Many parts of the old city still await excavation, such as theRoman aqueduct, a conical reservoir, and a largerRoman theatre. There is also an old 7th centurymosque built during the time of theRashidun Caliphate.
Capital:Suwayda | |||||||||||||||
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