Shaykh Najjar Industrial City شيخ نجار | |
|---|---|
Village | |
  Shaykh Najjar Industrial City | |
| Coordinates:36°16′22″N37°15′23″E / 36.27278°N 37.25639°E /36.27278; 37.25639 | |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Aleppo Governorate |
| District | Mount Simeon District |
| Nahiyah | Huraytan |
| Control |  Syrian Salvation Government[1] |
| Population (2004 census)[2] | |
• Total | 2,588 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Website | www.aic.gov.sy |
Shaykh Najjar (Arabic:شيخ نجار, also spelledSheikh Najjar), sometimes referred to asAleppo Industrial City, is an industrial city in northernSyria, administratively part of theAleppo Governorate, located 10 kilometers northeast ofAleppo.[3] Nearby localities includeKafr Saghir to the north,al-Muslimiyah to the northwest,Tell Shaghib to the south andFah to the southeast. According to the SyrianCentral Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Shaykh Najjar had a population of 2,588 in the 2004 census.[2]
Shaykh Najjar is a relatively new development and is the closest Syrian industrial center to the border withTurkey. By 2010–11, there were 1,923 companies operating in the industrial zone. About 40% of the firms inside the city are Turkish-owned. In addition to proximity, Turkish business owners benefit from tariff-free trade agreements between Syria and Turkey as well as the tariff-free exports of Turkish products made in Syria to theArab world. Investors that open businesses inside the industrial zone are able to be assigned land and have the documents to proceed operations within 24 hours.[4]
Shaykh Najjar is seen as one of the first urban developments built outside the ring roads of Aleppo. According to Anna Irene Del Monaco, an Italian researcher of urban landscapes, Shaykh Najjar has the potential of reducing the "proliferation of industrial zones in the fabric inside the ring roads" and would absorb more workers from the countryside of Aleppo.[5]
During the ongoingSyrian civil war which began in 2011, clashes between the opposition rebels and government forces have resulted in the destruction of hundreds of businesses in Aleppo, including in Shaykh Najjar. According to aReuters report from 4 October 2012, the industrial zone "is now little more than a ghost town where guards try to protect some factories at great risk to their lives."[6] By October 2012, around 20 pharmaceutical plants discontinued production, causing the potential risk of a medicine shortage.[3] By April 2021, 685 establishments had returned to the industrial city.[7][unreliable source]
On 30 November 2024, theSyrian Democratic Forces took control of the city amidst theattack on Aleppo and the subsequent withdrawal of thepro-government forces.[8]
On 2 December 2024,Tahrir al-Sham captured the Sheikh Najjar industrial zone from the SDF.[9]
