Daraa
دَرْعَا | |
|---|---|
City | |
 Daraa in 2008 | |
  Daraa | |
| Coordinates: 32°37′N 36°6′E / 32.617°N 36.100°E | |
| Grid position | 253/224 PAL |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Daraa |
| District | Daraa |
| Subdistrict | Daraa |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Asaad Yazid al-Toukan[1] |
| Elevation | 435 m (1,427 ft) |
| Population (2004 census)[2] | |
| • Total | 97,969 |
| Demonym(s) | Arabic: درعاوي, romanized: Darʿāwi |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Area code | 15 |
| Geocode | C5993 |
| Website | http://www.esyria.sy/edaraa/ |
Daraa (Arabic: دَرْعَا, romanized: Darʿā, Levantine Arabic: [ˈdarʕa] is a city in southwestern Syria, located about 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) north of the border with Jordan. It is the capital of Daraa Governorate in the Hauran region. The city is located about 90 kilometres (56 mi) south of Damascus on the Damascus–Amman highway, and is used as a stopping station for travelers. Nearby localities include Umm al-Mayazen and Nasib to the southeast, al-Naimah to the east, Ataman to the north, al-Yaduda to the northwest and Ramtha, Jordan, to the southwest.
According to the Syrian Central Bureau of Statistics, Daraa had a population of 97,969 in the 2004 census. It is the administrative center of a nahiya (subdistrict) which contained eight localities with a collective population of 146,481 in 2004.[2] Its inhabitants are predominantly Sunni Muslims.[3]
Daraa became known as the "cradle of the revolution"[4] after protests at the arrest of 15 boys from prominent families for painting graffiti with anti-government slogans[5] sparked the beginning of the 2011 Syrian Revolution.[6]
- ^ "الرئيس الأسد يصدر مَراسيم بتعيين محافظين جدد لخمس محافظات" [President Al-Assad issues decrees appointing new governors for five governorates]. SANA. 17 October 2024. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ a b General Census of Population and Housing 2004 Archived 2012-07-23 at archive.today. Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Daraa Governorate. (in Arabic)
- ^ Sterling, Joe. Daraa: The spark that lit the Syrian flame. CNN. 2012-03-01.
- ^ "Three years later, south Syria's Daraa province locked in stalemate". Syria Direct. Retrieved 2016-02-17.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Syria: How it all began". GlobalPost. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
- ^ "Syria: Crimes Against Humanity in Daraa". Human Rights Watch. June 2011. Retrieved 2016-02-17.