Editing Damascus (section)

===Modern period===
====20th century====
{{see also|Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon}}
[[File:4ALHinDamascus.jpg|thumb|The Turkish Hospital in Damascus on 1 October 1918, shortly after the entry of the Australian [[4th Light Horse Regiment (Australia)|4th Light Horse Regiment]]]]
In the early years of the 20th century, nationalist sentiment in Damascus, initially cultural in its interest, began to take a political coloring, largely in reaction to the [[turkicisation]] program of the [[Committee of Union and Progress]] government established in Istanbul in 1908. The hanging of a number of patriotic intellectuals by [[Jamal Pasha]], governor of Damascus, in Beirut and Damascus in 1915 and 1916 further stoked nationalist feeling, and in 1918, as the forces of the [[Arab Revolt]] and the British Imperial forces approached, residents fired on the retreating Turkish troops.
[[File:Emir Faisal; Lt. Colonel T.E. Lawrence - early 1918.jpg|thumb|[[Faisal I of Iraq|King Faisal of Syria]] and [[T. E. Lawrence]] on [[HMS Orion]] during [[World War I]], 1918.|left]]

On 1 October 1918, [[T. E. Lawrence]] [[Capture of Damascus (1918)|entered Damascus]], the third arrival of the day, the first being the Australian [[3rd Light Horse Brigade]], led by Major [[Arthur Charles Olden|A.C.N. 'Harry' Olden]].<ref>Barker, A. (1998) "The Allies Enter Damascus", ''History Today'', Volume 48</ref> Two days later, 3 October 1918, [[Sharifian Army|the forces of the Arab revolt led by]] [[Faisal I of Iraq|Prince Faisal]] also entered Damascus.<ref>Roberts, P.M., ''World War I, a Student Encyclopedia'', 2006, ABC-CLIO, p. 657</ref> A military government under [[Shukri Pasha Al-Ayyubi|Shukri Pasha]] was named and Faisal ibn Hussein was proclaimed [[Arab Kingdom of Syria|king of Syria]]. Political tension arose in November 1917, when the new [[Bolshevik]] government in Russia revealed the [[Sykes-Picot Agreement]] whereby Britain and France had arranged to partition the Arab East between them. A new Franco-British proclamation on 17 November promised the "complete and definitive freeing of the peoples so long oppressed by the Turks." The [[Syrian National Congress]] in March adopted a democratic constitution. However, the [[Versailles Conference]] had granted France a [[League of Nations mandate|mandate]] over Syria, and in 1920 a French army commanded by the General [[Mariano Goybet]] crossed the Anti-Lebanon Mountains, defeated a small Syrian defensive expedition at the [[Battle of Maysalun]] and [[Capture of Damascus (1920)|entered Damascus]]. The French made Damascus the capital of their [[League of Nations]] [[French Mandate of Syria and the Lebanon|Mandate for Syria]].

When in 1925 the [[Great Syrian Revolt]] in the [[Hauran]] spread to Damascus, the French suppressed it with heavy weaponry, bombing and shelling the city on 9 May 1926. As a result, the area of the old city between [[Al-Hamidiyah Souq]] and [[Medhat Pasha Souq]] was burned to the ground, with many deaths, and has since then been known as ''[[al-Hariqa]]'' ("the fire"). The old city was surrounded with barbed wire to prevent rebels from infiltrating the [[Ghouta]], and a new road was built outside the northern ramparts to facilitate the movement of armored cars. Reporter [[George Seldes]] viewed 308 bodies, and suggested there might be more dead under the rubble—and that a maximum might be one thousand.  "When the Muslims, who had rebelled, threatened to kill all Christians, General Maurice Sarrail gave the civilian population time to evacuate, then ordered Fort Gouraud to fire some warning shots, then shell the rebel sector."  <ref>Seldes, George, ''Witness to a Century'', 1987, Ballantine Books, p. 232</ref>

On 21 June 1941, 3 weeks into the Allied [[Syria-Lebanon campaign]], [[Battle of Damascus (1941)|Damascus was captured]] from the [[Vichy French]] forces by a mixed British Indian and Free French force. The French agreed to withdraw in 1946, following the British intervention during the [[Levant Crisis]], thus leading to the full independence of Syria. Damascus remained the capital and has been unchanged even following the start of [[Ba'athist Syria|Ba'athist rule]] in 1963.

In 1979, the [[Old City of Damascus]], with its collection of archaeological and historical religious sites, was listed as a [[World Heritage Site]] by [[UNESCO]].

==== Civil war ====
{{main|Syrian civil war}}
[[File:Damascus Opera House.jpg|thumb|The [[Damascus Opera House]], opened in 2004]]
[[File:ISS013-E-82035.jpg|thumb|Damascus in 2006, taken from the International Space Station]]

By January 2012, [[Rif Dimashq Governorate campaign|clashes]] between the regular army and rebels reached the outskirts of Damascus, reportedly preventing people from leaving or reaching their houses, especially when security operations there intensified from the end of January into February.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://syria-today.com/index.php/life/18976-dead-ends |title=Public transportation in Damascus is having an uphill go of it |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321225005/http://syria-today.com/index.php/life/18976-dead-ends |archive-date=2012-03-21}}</ref>

By June 2012, bullets and shrapnel shells smashed into homes in Damascus overnight as troops battled the Free Syrian Army in the streets. At least three tank shells slammed into residential areas in the central Damascus neighborhood of Qaboun, according to activists. Intense exchanges of assault rifle fire marked the clash, according to residents and amateur video posted online.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/middle-east/heavy-gunfire-in-syria-s-capital-during-the-weekend-1.435372|title=Heavy gunfire in Syria's capital during the weekend|newspaper=[[Haaretz]]|date=10 June 2012|access-date=10 June 2012|archive-date=2 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230402185806/https://www.haaretz.com/2012-06-10/ty-article/heavy-gunfire-in-syrias-capital-during-weekend/0000017f-f683-d887-a7ff-fee727e70000|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Damascus suburb of [[Ghouta]] suffered heavy bombing in December 2017 and a further wave of bombing started in February 2018, also known as [[Rif Dimashq offensive (February–April 2018)|Rif Dimashq Offensive]].

On 20 May 2018, Damascus and the entire Rif Dimashq Governorate came fully under government control for the first time in 7 years after the evacuation of [[Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant|IS]] from [[Yarmouk Camp]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-military-in-full-control-of-damascus-for-first-time-in-years/ |title=Syrian military in full control of Damascus for first time in years |first=Leith |last=Aboufadel |date=20 May 2018 |access-date=20 May 2018 |newspaper=[[Al-Masdar News]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180520192808/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-military-in-full-control-of-damascus-for-first-time-in-years/ |archive-date=20 May 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In September 2019, Damascus entered the ''[[Guinness World Records]]'' as the least liveable city, scoring 30.7 points on the [[Economist Intelligence Unit|Economist]]'s [[Global Liveability Ranking|Global Liveability Index]] in 2019, based on factors such as: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/100393-least-habitable-city |title=Least habitable city |website=Guinness World Records |date=September 2019 |access-date=9 October 2020 |archive-date=25 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125230533/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/100393-least-habitable-city |url-status=live }}</ref> However, the trend of being the least liveable city on Earth started in 2017,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/news/liveable-cities-2017-economist-intelligence/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/news/liveable-cities-2017-economist-intelligence/ |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title= Revealed: The world's best (and worst) cities to live in |website=The Telegraph |date=16 August 2017 }}{{cbignore}}</ref> and continued as of 2024.<ref>{{cite web |date=27 June 2024 |title=Vienna secures its position as the world's most liveable city for third consecutive year |url=https://www.eiu.com/n/vienna-secures-its-position-as-the-worlds-most-liveable-city-for-third-consecutive-year/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240702050716/https://www.eiu.com/n/vienna-secures-its-position-as-the-worlds-most-liveable-city-for-third-consecutive-year/ |archive-date=2 July 2024 |publisher=The Economist}}</ref>
[[File:2024 Israeli invasion of Syria.png|thumb|190px|Israeli-occupied [[Golan Heights]] and [[2024 Israeli invasion of Syria|Israeli invasion of Syria]] in December 2024]]
Syrian rebels, led by the [[Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham|HTS]] rebel group [[Fall of Damascus (2024)|entered Damascus]] on 8 December 2024 after a [[2024 Syrian opposition offensives|series of offensives]], capturing [[Sednaya Prison]] and later resulting in [[Fall of the Assad regime|the collapse]] of [[Ba'athist Syria]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/12/07/world/syria-war-damascus/7a2f4dc8-f7b8-5cbc-8563-574654b05876 |title=Syrian rebels said their forces had entered Damascus and taken the Sednaya prison complex north of the city. |date=7 December 2024 |last=Abdulrahim |first=Raja |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=7 December 2024}}</ref>

On 23 February 2025, Israeli Prime Minister [[Benjamin Netanyahu]] demanded the complete demilitarization of southern Syria in the provinces of [[Quneitra Governorate|Quneitra]], [[Daraa Governorate|Daraa]] and [[Suwayda Governorate|Suweyda]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel demands complete demilitarisation of southern Syria |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvgenz02lp8o |work=BBC |date=24 February 2025}}</ref> and the withdrawal of Syrian forces from Syrian territory south of Damascus.<ref>{{cite news |title=Netanyahu says Israel won't allow Syrian forces 'south of Damascus' |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/netanyahu-says-israel-won-t-allow-syrian-forces-south-of-damascus-/7985248.html |work=VOA News |date=February 23, 2025}}</ref> Syria's new regime under President [[Ahmed al-Sharaa]] rejected Netanyahu's demands.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kliment |first1=Alex |title=Israel turns the screws on Syria's new leader |url=https://www.gzeromedia.com/middle-east/israel-turns-screws-on-syria |work=GZERO Media |date=26 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=25 February 2025 |title=Syria calls for Israel's withdrawal from its lands, national dialogue closing statement says |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syria-calls-israels-withdrawal-its-lands-national-dialogue-closing-statement-2025-02-25/ |website=Reuters}}</ref> Hours later, Israel conducted a wave of airstrikes in Damascus and southern Syria.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel bombs ‘military targets’ in southern Syria, outside Damascus |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/2/26/israel-bombs-military-targets-in-southern-syria-outside-damascus |work=Al Jazeera |date=26 February 2025}}</ref>