2.11.1. Administrative division and population estimates

Table of contents

Rural Damascus governorate (or Rif Dimashq)1070 is divided into the 9 districts of Al-Nabk, Al-Qutayfa, Al-Tall, Al-Zabdani, Darayya, Duma (Douma), Rural Damascus (Markaz Rif Dimashq), Qatana, Yabroud, which are further divided into a total of 36 sub-districts.1071 It shares borders with Lebanon and Jordan, and adjoins to Sweida, Dar’a, Quneitra and Homs governorates as well as Damascus governorate, which it encircles.1072

According to IOM, the total population of Rural Damascus governorate as of April 2026 was 5 744 566 including residents, IDPs, and returnees from abroad.1073

  • 1070

    Syria, Syria Embassy, Provincial System of The Syrian Arab Republic, n.d., url

  • 1071

    UNOCHA, Humanitarian Needs Overview 2024: Syrian Arab Republic, 3 March 2024, url, pp. 109-110

  • 1072

    Netherlands, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, General Country of Origin Information Report on Syria, 30 January 2026, url, p. 41

  • 1073

    IOM, Syrian Arab Republic – Population Mobility and Baseline Assessment – Round 15 – April 2026, 18 May 2026, url, p. 7