Mezzeh ٱلْمَزَّة | |
|---|---|
Municipality | |
| Al Mazzeh | |
 Fayez Mansour Street (Mezzeh Highway) | |
 | |
  Mezzeh | |
| Coordinates:33°30′11″N36°15′30″E / 33.50306°N 36.25833°E /33.50306; 36.25833 | |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Damascus Governorate |
| City | Damascus |
| Population (2004) | |
• Total | 123,313[1] |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (AST) |
| Climate | BSk |
Mezzeh (Arabic:ٱلْمَزَّة,romanized: al-Mazzah, also transcribed as al-Mazzah, el-Mazze, etc.) is amunicipality inDamascus,Syria, due west ofKafr Sousa. It lies to the southwest of central Damascus, along the Mazzeh highway (also known as Fayez Mansour).
It started gaining importance when theFrench constructedMezzeh Air Base, which was the main airport in Damascus untilDamascus International Airport opened. It also held the notoriousMezzeh prison until 2000. The municipality includes theDamascus University and contains many foreign embassies.[2] The currentpresidential palace sits atop Mount Mazzeh and overlooks all of Damascus.[3] It is one of the most modern and expensive areas of Damascus, especially the areas along the highway.[4]
The Western and Eastern Villa districts along the highway are affluent and cosmopolitan. The primarilyAlawite Mezzeh 86 district is comparatively poor and has been described as a slum.[4][5]
Mezzeh was originally a village outside of Damascus. It was allegedly founded between 661 and 750 byYemeni migrants.[6] It was still a separate village at the time of the Ottoman conquest of Syria, and in 1535 it had a recorded population of 150 households, along with 35bachelors and a residentImam.[7]
Mezzeh featured prominently in the 1941Battle of Damascus.Compton Mackenzie later described it at the time as being "a large village standing at the junction of the road from Damascus to Beirut and Quneitra".[8]
In 2012, during theSyrian civil war, residents participated in anti-government protests, resulting in arrests.[3] In March 2012, the area experienced heavy fighting between government forces and defectors.[9][4] TheAlawite Mezzeh 86 neighborhood has been targeted by bombings of civilian and military targets.[10]
In December 2024, the neighborhood gained notoriety for being identified as the place where Syrian revolutionary leader,Ahmed Al-Sharaa, had spent his childhood.[11][12] Upon successfully capturing Damascus, Al-Sharaa toured the neighborhood and returned to his childhood home and respectfully asked the occupants to clear the place when possible so that his family could return after living in exile since the start of the Syrian revolution.[12] While touring the neighborhood, Al-Sharaa got his hair cut at the local barbershop and took photos with locals.[12]
 | This article about a location inDamascus Governorate, Syria is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. |
