Dabiq, Syria

Dabiq (Arabic: دابق /ˈdaːbiq/) is a town in northern Syria, about 40 kilometres (25 mi) northeast of Aleppo and around 10 km (6.2 mi) south of Syria's border with Turkey. It is administratively part of the Akhtarin nahiyah (subdistrict) of the A'zaz District of Aleppo Governorate. Nearby localities include Mare' to the southwest, Sawran to the northwest, and Akhtarin town to the southeast. In the 2004 census, Dabiq had a population of 3,364.[1] The town was the site of the battle of Marj Dabiq in 1516, in which the Ottoman Empire decisively defeated the Mamluk Sultanate.[2]

This article is about the town. For other uses, see Dabiq (disambiguation).
Dabiq
دابق
Town
Dabiq is located in Syria
Dabiq
Dabiq
Location of Dabiq in Syria
Coordinates: 36°32′14″N 37°16′05″E
Country Syria
GovernorateAleppo
DistrictAzaz
SubdistrictAkhtarin
Control Turkey
Syrian opposition Syrian Interim Government
Elevation
449.18 m (1,473.69 ft)
Population
 (2004)[1]
3,364
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
GeocodeC1597

In Islamic eschatology, it is believed that Dabiq is one of two possible locations (the other is Amaq) for an epic battle between invading Christians and the defending Muslims which will result in a Muslim victory and mark the beginning of the end of times. The Islamic terrorist group Islamic State believes Dabiq is where an epic and decisive battle will take place with Christian forces of the West, and have named their online magazine after the village.[2] After being driven out of the town of Dabiq by the Turkish military and Syrian rebels in October 2016, IS replaced this publication with a new one named Rumiyah.

History

During Caliph Sulayman's reign (715–717), Dabiq, near the Arab–Byzantine frontier, succeeded Jabiyah's role as the main military camp in Syria.[3]

Dabiq was visited by Syrian geographer Yaqut al-Hamawi in the early 13th-century, during Ayyubid rule. He noted that it was "a village of the 'Azaz District lying 4 leagues from Halab (Aleppo). Near it is a green and pleasant meadow, where the Omayyad troops encamped, when they made the celebrated expedition against Al Massissah, which was to have been continued even to the walls of Constantinople. The tomb of Caliph Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik, who led the expedition, lies here."[4]

In August 2014 the Islamic State (IS) conquered the town, destroying the Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik shrine.[5] On 16 October 2016, Syrian National Army rebels captured the town from IS.[6][7]

In Islamic eschatology

In Islamic eschatology as found in the Hadith, the area of Dabiq is mentioned as a place of some of the events of the Muslim Malahim (which would equate to the Christian apocalypse, or Armageddon).[8] Abu Hurayrah, companion to Muhammad, reported in his Hadith that Muhammad said:

The Last Hour would not come until the Romans land at al-A’maq or in Dabiq. An army consisting of the best (soldiers) of the people of the earth at that time will come from Medina (to counteract them).[9]

Scholars and hadith commentators suggest that the word Romans refers to Christians.[10] The hadith further relates the subsequent Muslim victory, followed by the peaceful takeover of Constantinople with invocations of takbir and tasbih, and finally the defeat of the Masih ad-Dajjal following the return and descent of Jesus Christ.[11][12]

References
  1. "2004 Census Data for Nahiya Akhtarin" (in Arabic). Syrian Central Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-09-05. Also available in English: UN OCHA. "2004 Census Data". Humanitarian Data Exchange.
  2. McCants, William (3 October 2014). "ISIS fantasies of an apocalyptic showdown in northern Syria". Markaz. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution. Archived from the original on 16 September 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  3. Lammens, p. 360.
  4. le Strange, 1890, p. 426
  5. Analysis (2014-11-17). "Why Islamic State chose town of Dabiq for propaganda". BBC News. Retrieved 2016-10-03.
  6. "Syria conflict: Rebels 'capture' IS stronghold of Dabiq". BBC News. 2016-10-16. Retrieved 2016-10-16.
  7. Turkish-backed Syrian opposition captures Dabiq from IS. 16 October 2016 The Washington Post.
  8. Giles Fraser (10 October 2014). "To Islamic State, Dabiq is important – but it's not the end of the world". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  9. Sahih-Muslim Hadith, Vol. 41, Chap. 9, Hadith 6924, per Abu Huraira from Quran/Hadith study site: The Only Quran. Retrieved 16 November 2014
  10. Farzana Hassan (15 Jan 2008). Prophecy and the Fundamentalist Quest: An Integrative Study of Christian and Muslim Apocalyptic Religion (illustrated ed.). McFarland. p. 41. ISBN 9780786480791.
  11. Farzana Hassan (15 Jan 2008). Prophecy and the Fundamentalist Quest: An Integrative Study of Christian and Muslim Apocalyptic Religion (illustrated ed.). McFarland. pp. 41–2. ISBN 9780786480791.
  12. Muhammad Saed Abdul-Rahman (2009). The Meaning and Explanation of the Glorious Qur'an (Vol 2) (2 ed.). MSA Publication Limited. pp. 311–12. ISBN 9781861797667.

Bibliography
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