According to the Bible Damascus is totally destroyed..reduced to nothing but rubble and won’t be rebuilt. Is this the time? Who knows.
You should watch some middle east news-—Damascus is disappearing about a block at a time. A century or what they call modernization is disolving by the day. And there will be no source of money, not even from Iran, to re-build Damascus or any of the other krapholes in Syria that are currently being deleted. If the rebels can get their hands on some heavy weapons, like , oh, say some 155’s the whole place will be wasteland forever. Note that the arabs have never been big on re-building anything-—think Babylon. ( try to find the book “Modern Arab Architechture”). Until the whole bunch shakes off those old tribal bitchandmoans they will never quite be ready for the next century.
The Umayyed Mosque there is a wonder.
I saw about a dozen imams sitting in a circle around a tall (14 feet or so) structure, made of brass, with a largish top, praying. That top was considered by the mullahs to contain the head of John the Baptist.
They do that 24/7 for this relic.
For the Umayyad Mosque of Aleppo, see Great Mosque of Aleppo. Umayyad Mosque جامع بني أمية الكبير
Location: within Old Damascus
Basic information:
Location: Damascus, Syria
Geographic coordinates: 33°30′43″N 36°18′24″E
Affiliation: Islam
Region: Levant
Status: Active
Architectural description
Architectural type: Mosque
Architectural style: Umayyad
Completed 715
Specifications
Minaret(s): 3
Materials: Stone, marble, tile, mosaic
The Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus (Arabic: جامع بني أمية الكبير, Romanization Ğām' Banī 'Umayya al-Kabīr) or formerly the Basilica of Saint John the Baptist (Greek: Βασιλική του Αγίου Ιωάννη του Βαπτιστή, transliteration Vasilikí tou Agíou Ioánni tou Vaptistí), located in the old city of Damascus, is one of the largest and oldest mosques in the world. It is considered by some Muslims to be the fourth-holiest place in Islam.
After the Arab conquest of Damascus in 634, the mosque was built on the site of a Christian basilica dedicated to John the Baptist (Yahya). The mosque holds a shrine which today may still contain the head of John the Baptist, honored as a prophet by both Christians and Muslims alike, and is believed to be the place where Isa (Jesus) will return at the End of Days.
The tomb of Saladin stands in a small garden adjoining the north wall of the mosque.