The Aleppo Armenian Society’s open-air cafe has reopened in Midan, Aleppo’s main Armenian district after being shuttered for four years after violence reached the city in 2012, AFP reports.
It reopened in June, six months after the government recaptured all of the city.
Relaxed laughter and giggling children have replaced the boom of explosions in the restaurant, nestled between the Armenian Society and the St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic church.
The cafe opened in 2007, and quickly became a favoured haunt for residents of Midan because of its family atmosphere and leafy terrace, where plastic chairs and tables are illuminated by hanging lanterns.
Second city Aleppo was home to the largest contingent of Syria’s Armenian community: 150,000 out of 350,000 across the country, according to Syria specialist and geographer Fabrice Balanche.
Now, no more than 10,000 are left in Aleppo, after thousands fled to Armenia, neighbouring Lebanon or even further afield to the United States, Canada, and Europe.
