More photos from AleppoAleppo (Arabic
Halab) city in northern Syria, capital of Aleppo Governorate. It lies on a plateau 427 m (1400 ft) high, midway between the
Mediterranean Sea and the Euphrates River. The second largest city of Syria,
Aleppo is an agricultural trading center and has factories producing
carpets; silk, cotton, and wool textiles; silverware and gold ware; leather
goods; and embroidery. Aleppo consists of an old and a new town; the former is
enclosed within a wall dating from medieval times. Among the most important
buildings are the modern citadel, surrounded by a moat and standing on a hill 61
m (200 ft) high, and the Mosque of Zacharias, said to contain the tomb of Saint
John the Baptist's father. Also in Aleppo are a number of European schools and
Christian churches and missions. The University of Aleppo was founded in 1960.
The city is connected by rail with Damascus, and with Beirut, Lebanon, and by
caravan route with Iraq and parts of Kurdistan.
In the 3rd century AD, Aleppo
became the greatest center of trade between Europe and lands farther east. The
history of the city, which was settled by the Hittites before 1000 BC,
parallels that of Syria. Population (1992 estimate) 1,445,000.
