Homs, July 10 (SANA) The Krak des Chevaliers, one of Syria’s best-known medieval landmarks and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is re-emerging as a major tourist destination following restoration work after damage sustained during the war.
Perched on a hill 750 meters above sea level in the western countryside of Homs, the fortress dates back nearly nine centuries and has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2006.
Hazem Hanna, head of the Krak des Chevaliers Antiquities Department in Homs, said the castle is regarded as one of the world’s finest preserved medieval fortresses, noted for its military architecture and advanced defensive design. Covering around 30,000 square meters, it consists of an inner and outer fortress separated by a defensive moat.
Hanna said the fortress occupied a strategic position that enabled Mamluk Sultan al-Zahir Baybars to control key military and trade routes linking Syria’s coast with the interior after recapturing it from the Crusaders in 1271.
He said the site suffered extensive damage during shelling by the deposed regime between 2013 and 2014, affecting the inner courtyard, main entrance, staircase leading to the circular courtyard, Baybars’ Tower, the Commanders’ Tower and the northern façade.
According to Hanna, the Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums, working in coordination with UNESCO, has restored much of the damage, while conservation work continues.
Originally built in 1031 by the Mirdasid ruler of Homs, Nasr ibn Mirdas, the fortress was later known as Hisn al-Akrad (“Fortress of the Kurds”) after a Kurdish garrison was stationed there. Today, the Krak des Chevaliers is widely regarded as one of the largest and best-preserved medieval castles in the world and remains among Syria’s leading cultural and tourism attractions.
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