Darayya (Arabic: داريا) is a suburb of Damascus in Syria, the centre of Darayya lying 8 km (5.0 miles) south-west of the centre of Damascus. Administratively it belongs to Rif Dimashq.
The city had a population of 78,763 as of 2005[update], making it the 19th largest city per geographical entity in Syria.[1] Darayya has an altitude of 689 metres (2,260 feet). It is one of the oldest cities in Syria, reportedly the place where Paul the Apostle had his conversion (30s AD), "on Damascus road". PatriarchGregory III Laham, the current leader of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church was born here on 15 December 1933 as Lutfy Laham.
Darayya has seen heavy fighting during the Syrian Civil War. The city was an early hotspot for anti-government protests. In August 2012, opposition groups denounced that government forces performed a mass killing that was later known as Darayya massacre,[2][3] and a second time on 4 January 2013.[4] However, as of summer 2013 fighting continued in the city with most of the municipality controlled by the armed opposition forces.[5]
By mid-2016, the Syrian Army controlled approximately 65% of Darayya, steadily advancing and tightening the siege.[6] In August 2016, an agreement allowed for the evacuation of rebel fighters as well as civilians.[7] Some 700 rebels were safely transported to the rebel stronghold city of Idlib in the north.[8] This agreement was essentially a rebel surrender.
Syria
