Kobani | |
|---|---|
City | |
| Ayn al-Arab | |
 View of Kobanî during the siege in 2014 | |
  Kobani Location in Syria | |
| Coordinates: 36°53′28″N 38°21′13″E / 36.8910278°N 38.3536111°E | |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Aleppo |
| District | Ayn al-Arab |
| Subdistrict | Ayn al-Arab |
| Founded | 1915 |
| Area | |
• City | 7 km2 (3 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 520 m (1,710 ft) |
| Population (2004 census, unless stated otherwise)[1] | |
• City | 44,821 |
• Estimate (2015)[2] | 40,000 |
| • Nahiyah | 78,130 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | +3 |
| P-Code | C1946 |
| Geocode | SY020600 |
Kobani,[a][3] officially Ayn al-Arab,[b] is a Kurdish-majority city in northern Syria, lying immediately south of the Syria–Turkey border. As a consequence of the Syrian civil war, the city came under the control of the Kurdish-majority People's Protection Units (YPG) militia in 2012 and became the administrative center of the Kobani Canton,[4] later transformed into Euphrates Region of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria.
From September 2014 to January 2015, the city was under siege by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Most of the eastern parts of the city were destroyed and most of the population fled to Turkey.[5] In 2015, many returned and reconstruction began.[6]
In mid October 2019, Kurdish forces accepted the entry of the Syrian Army and Russian Military Police in a bid to stop Turkey from invading the town.[7]
Prior to the Syrian Civil War, Kobani was recorded as having a population of close to 45,000.[1] According to 2013 estimates, the majority of the inhabitants were Kurds, with Arab, Turkmen, and Armenian minorities.[8]
- ^ a b "General Census of Population and Housing 2004: Ain al-Arab nahiyah" (in Arabic). Syrian Central Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original on 24 November 2015. Retrieved 15 October 2015. Also available in English: "Syria: 2004 census data". UN OCHA. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
- ^ "40 thousand have returned to Kobanê so far". BestaNûçe. 17 March 2015. Archived from the original on 13 July 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
- ^ Ehmed, Raman (12 March 2020). "Kobanî yan Kobanê?". ZIMANNAS.
- ^ Abboud 2018, Table 4.1 Cantons of the Rojava Administration.
- ^ "Syrian Kurds 'drive Islamic State out of Kobane'". BBC News. 26 January 2015. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
- ^ Graham-Harrison, Emma (31 January 2015). "Kobani: destroyed and riddled with unexploded bombs, but its residents dare to dream of a new start". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:0was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ according to a 2013 estimate, about 90% Kurds, close to 5% Arab and Turkmen, and 1% Armenians."The Second Report: Ayn al-Arab/Kobani, Etana Billetin-First issue". Etana Files. 1 December 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2014.
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