Deir ez-Zor Governorate ( /

ALA-LC ALA-LC (American Library AssociationLibrary of Congress) is a set of standards for romanization, the representation of text in other writing systems using the Latin script. Applications The system is used to represent bibliographic information by ...

: ''Muḥāfaẓat Dayr az-Zawr,'' Kurdish'':'' ''Parêzgeha Dêrezor'') is one of the fourteen governorates (provinces) of

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. It is situated in eastern Syria, bordering

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. It has an area of 33,060 km² (12,760 sq mi) and a population of 1,239,000 (2011 estimate). The capital is

Deir ez-Zor Deir ez-Zor () is the largest city in eastern Syria and the seventh largest in the country. Located on the banks of the Euphrates to the northeast of the capital Damascus, Deir ez-Zor is the capital of the Deir ez-Zor Governorate. In the 2018 ...

. It is divided roughly equally from northwest to southeast by the

Euphrates The Euphrates ( ; see #Etymology, below) is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of West Asia. Tigris–Euphrates river system, Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia (). Originati ...

. Most of the territory on the river's left (northeast) bank is part of the

Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria The Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES), also known as Rojava, is a ''de facto'' Autonomous administrative division, autonomous region in northeastern Syria. It consists of self-governing Regions of North and E ...

, while that on the right (southwest) bank is controlled by the Syrian transitional government.

Districts

The governorate is divided into three

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

( manatiq). The districts are further divided into 14 sub-districts ( nawahi): *

Deir ez-Zor District Deir ez-Zor District () is a district of the Deir ez-Zor Governorate in northeastern Syria. The administrative centre An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the c ...

(7 sub-districts) ** Deir ez-Zor Subdistrict ** Al-Kasrah Subdistrict ** Al-Busayrah Subdistrict ** Al-Muhasan Subdistrict ** Al-Tabni Subdistrict ** Khasham Subdistrict ** Al-Suwar Subdistrict * Abu Kamal District (4 sub-districts) ** Abu Kamal Subdistrict ** Hajin Subdistrict ** Al-Jalaa Subdistrict ** Al-Susah Subdistric * Mayadin District (3 sub-districts) ** Mayadin Subdistrict ** Diban Subdistrict ** Al-Asharah Subdistrict

History

On 6 September 2007 Israel attacked and destroyed a facility in the governorate that Israel claimed was a nuclear siteIAEA: Syria tried to build nuclear reactor
Associated Press Latest Update: 04.28.11, 18:10 in Operation Outside the Box. The complex was suspected of holding nuclear materials from

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. In 2011, the IAEA confirmed it had been a nuclear weapons site.

Syrian Civil War

In the course of Syrian Civil War, as the Syrian Army has concentrated its forces on wresting back control of Aleppo, rebels have slowly gained ground in the eastern tribal heartland, aiming to control the country's 200,000 barrel-a-day oil output.Khaled Yacoub Oweis
"Assad's Aleppo focus allows rebel gains in Syria's east"
Reuters, 14 August 2012 In August 2012, units of the

Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...

(FSA) targeted the remaining isolated outposts of the Syrian Army forces in north-east Syria, where the FSA controls all the main roads. There were said to be only 3 Army outposts left in Deir ez-Zor province countryside and they were under attack. On 30 November 2012, Syrian troops withdrew from Omar oil field, one of the last regime positions east of Deir ez-Zor city near the Iraqi border. This meant that the rebels controlled the country's major fields. This happened after Syrian troops lost the

Conoco Conoco ( ), formerly known as Continental Oil, is an American Petroleum industry, petroleum brand that is operating under the current ownership of the Phillips 66 Company since 2012 and is headquartered in the Westchase, Houston, Westchase neigh ...

gas reserve on 27 November. The insurgents took control of an oil field for the first time on 4 November when they overran Al-Ward, the most important in the province. After also losing control of Al-Jofra field also in November, the army controlled not more than five fields, all located to the west of Deir ez-Zor city. Residents in Deir ez-Zor used crude oil for heating and agriculture for lack of fuel. On 1 January 2013, it was reported that two thirds of Deir ez-Zor Governorate was under rebel control."سوريا - أهم المناطق التي سيطر عليها الجيش الحر عام 2012"
Al Jazeera, 1 January 2013.

Siege of Deir ez-Zor

On 11 April 2014,

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

(ISIL) withdrew from Abu Kamal to the T2 oil site, where a Syria-Iraq pipeline runs. On 3 July, the Syrian Organisation for Human Rights (SOHR) said that all towns and villages on the route from Abu Kamal to Al-Bab, passing through

Raqqa governorate Raqqa Governorate (, Kurdish: ''Parêzgeha Reqa'') is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in the north of the country and covers an area of 19,618 km2. The capital is Raqqa. The Islamic State of Iraq and Levant claim ...

, were now under ISIL control. Only the provincial capital Deir ez-Zor and the military airport were outside of it. The city of Deir ez-Zor was split between President

Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...

's forces and an amalgam of rebel groups. In 2014 ISIL militants massacred an estimated 900 members of the Al-Shaitat tribe in the governorate, following resistance to the group's control of the area. In early 2016, fighters from the

Syrian Democratic Forces The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is a Kurds in Syria, Kurdish-led coalition of U.S.-backed Left-wing politics, left-wing ethnic militias and rebel groups, and serves as the official military wing of the Democratic Autonomous Administration ...

entered the governorate following the Al-Shaddadi offensive. Until October 2017, ISIL controlled all of the countryside, while Syrian Government forces held out in the capital. On 14 October 2017, Russia confirmed that Al-Mayadeen was recaptured by the Syrian army amid a major offensive. The military fully secured Deir ez-Zor city on 3 November and on 17 November 2017, ISIL surrendered the island of Hawijat Kati, bringing all areas around the city under Army control following the two-month offensive. On 23 October 2017, the Syrian troops began an offensive towards Abu Kamal, being ISIL's last stronghold in the governorate. The city was captured on 19 November 2017 after changing hands three times.

ISIL insurgency in Deir ez-Zor

In 2018 ISIL started insurgency in Deir ez-Zor.

Kurdish-Turkish conflict

On 26 February 2025, four SDF fighters and eight civilians were killed in a Turkish airstrike on military positions of SDF.

Demographics

Arabs Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of yea ...

constitute about 90% of the population of the governorate, a vast majority being

Sunni Muslims Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

. About a thousand

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

live in the governorate as well. The most significant Arab tribes are the Bu Kamal, the Shuwayt, Al-Shaitat, Bakir, Bu Kamil, Mashahda, Bu Khabour, Qaraan and Bu Hassan who all are part of the 'Egaidat confederation. Beside the 'Egaidat confederation, other tribes include the Al-Baggara, Abeed, Kul’ayeen, and Albu Saraya.

Historic sites

Dura-Europos Dura-Europos was a Hellenistic, Parthian Empire, Parthian, and Ancient Rome, Roman border city built on an escarpment above the southwestern bank of the Euphrates river. It is located near the village of Al-Salihiyah, Deir ez-Zor Governorate, S ...

Synagogue of Dura-Europas
* Dura-Europos church * Mari * Zalabiye *

Terqa Terqa is an ancient city discovered at the site of Tell Ashara on the banks of the middle Euphrates in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, Syria, approximately from the modern border with Iraq and north of the ancient site of Mari, Syria. Its name had b ...

* Kingdom of Khana *

Al-Rahba Al-Rahba (/ALA-LC: ''al-Raḥba'', sometimes spelled ''Raḥabah''), also known as Qal'at al-Rahba, which translates as the "Citadel of al-Rahba", is a medieval Arab fortress on the west bank of the Euphrates River, adjacent to the city of May ...

Circesium Circesium ( ', ), known in Arabic as al-Qarqisiya, was a Roman fortress city near the junction of the Euphrates and Khabur rivers, located at the empire's eastern frontier with the Sasanian Empire. Procopius calls it the "farthest fortress" (φ ...

References

External links

edeiralzor
The First Complete website for Deir ez-Zor news and services {{DEFAULTSORT:Deir Ez-Zor Governorate Governorates of Syria Upper Mesopotamia