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Quneitra (also Al Qunaytirah, Qunaitira, or Kuneitra; Arabic: القنيطرة) is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in south-western Syria. It is situated in a high valley in the Golan Heights at an elevation of 1,010 metres (3,313 feet) above sea level. Quneitra was founded in the Ottoman era as a way station on the caravan route to Damascus and subsequently became a garrison town of some 20,000 people, strategically located near the ceasefire line with Israel. Its name is Arabic for "the little bridge".
On 10 June 1967, the last day of the Six-Day War, Quneitra came under Israeli control. It was briefly recaptured by Syria during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, but Israel regained control in its subsequent counter-offensive. The city was almost completely destroyed before the Israeli withdrawal in June 1974. It now lies in the demilitarized United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) Zone between Syria and Israel, a short distance from the de facto border between the two countries. Israel was heavily criticized by the United Nations for the city's destruction, while Israel has also criticized Syria for not rebuilding Quneitra.
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Image credit: Felipe Menegaz
Did you know...
- ... that Viedma Glacier (pictured) is part of the huge Southern Patagonian Ice Field, the third largest expanse of continental ice after Greenland and Antarctica?
- ... that Ridge A in Antarctica has been identified as the coldest, driest, calmest place on Earth?
- ... that Mount Widerøe, Antarctica, is named for Viggo Widerøe, who flew aerial photography planes to map 80,000 km2 (31,000 sq mi) of the continent's coast?
- ... that Lake Bistineau in northwestern Louisiana was originally formed in 1800 by flooding stemming from a large log jam on the nearby Red River?
- ... that Hurricane Greta in 1956 was the largest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded?
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