Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing

Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing
Passport Control Building in 2006
Coordinates
Carries	Commercial goods, vehicles
Crosses	Border between Turkey and Syria
Locale	Cilvegözü, Turkey Bab al-Hawa, Syria
Official name	Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing معبر باب الهوى

The Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing (Arabic: معبر باب الهوى‎‎, "Gate of the Winds") is an international border crossing between Syria and Turkey. It is situated on the M45 Syrian Highway and D827 Turkish Highway between the cities of İskenderun and Aleppo, and is known for its long lines of trucks and buses. The closest town on the Turkish side of the border is Reyhanlı in the Hatay Province, and the closest towns on the Syrian side are ad-Dana and Atarib. The crossing is the site of a 6th-century triumphal arch.

In the ongoing Syrian Civil War, it was a frequent place of crossing for Syrians trying to reach the refugee camp in nearby Reyhanlı. Drivers complained in December 2011 that they had been stalled at the crossing for days after customs officials stopped allowing vehicles with Turkish registrations to enter Syria. The crossing is a major route for smuggling, particularly oil and gas, and during the conflict has seen a dramatic rise in weapons smuggling. On 19 July 2012, Syrian rebels from the Free Syrian Army seized the border and defaced images of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. On 22 July 2012, Turkish armed forces further restricted border crossings of their own nationals.

In September 2012 foreign jihadis raised the black flag of al-Qaida at the border post, leading to a confrontation with the Free Syrian Army. On February 11, 2013, a car bomb in a Syrian-registered minivan was detonated on the Turkish side of the crossing meters from the Cilvegözü customs office. 13 people—including 3 Turkish civilians—were killed, while 28 others were wounded and 19 vehicles were damaged. The Turkish government has labeled the bombing a terrorist act, and said that Turkey's interior, justice and customs ministers would visit the area to help the investigation. On 7 December 2013, the Islamic Front took over the crossing from the Free Syrian Army, and as of July 2014, they were manning the Syrian side with members of the Salafist militia Ahrar ash-Sham.

Archaeology

There is a monumental Roman archway in Bab al-Hawa that was part of a city wall. There is a further complex of Byzantine architecture near the archway, that has been largely destroyed and re-used in border construction. It features a church along with another large rectangular building.

External links

• Bab al-Hawa - Archaeological Gate Links Syria and Turkey