Citadel of AleppoAleppo, Syria العربية

Damage and restoration

What was hit, what was rebuilt, by whom, and what is still waiting.

The Citadel's recent history is not a footnote to its story. It is the part of the story happening now, and it is the reason this site reopened rather than closed.

What happened

August 2012
The outer gate shelled at the start of the fighting in the Old City
2012–2016
The mound inside the front line; walls, gate and enclosure damaged
July 2015
A tunnel bomb detonated beneath the walls, bringing down a section
6 February 2023
The magnitude 7.8 earthquake; the southern advance tower badly damaged
17 February 2024
Reopening after two phases of restoration on the entrance towers

Who did the work

The full restoration record — the Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums, the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, and the other bodies involved, phase by phase — will be set out here, with dates and scope.

What is still waiting

Outstanding works, and the areas still closed for stabilisation, will be listed here.

Why this page exists

Most heritage sites keep their conservation record in an annual report nobody reads. We put it on the public site because for this monument the wound and the repair are, for the moment, the most interesting thing about it — and because a visitor standing in front of new stonework deserves to know it is new.