Rail revival

The handsome Hijaz Railway Station, dating to the early 20th century, is a major monument in central Damascus. Whenever I visit the Syrian capital en route to my hotel I pass the station and the historic Swiss-built railway engine which stands alongside. Designed by Spanish architect Fernando De Aranda, the station was commissioned in 1913, and boasts a decorated ceiling, stained glass windows, arches and black-and-white tiled floors. Trains ran from there through Deraa, Ma’an, Tabuk, and into Medina, halting at multiple stations and water points along the route. The debut departure was on Aug. 27 with guests and foreign journalists as passengers and travelled from Istanbul to Medina in three days, pausing only to take on fuel and water.

The rail line was built by the last Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid to enable Muslim pilgrims from Asia and the Levant to travel by train between the Syrian capital and Medina and Mecca in the Hijaz, Saudi Arabia. The train not only reduced the arduous 1,300-kilometre, 40-day camel trek to a 72-hour journey, but also provided trade routes for merchants and strategic access by Ottoman troops to trouble spots in the far-flung empire. At that time these lands consisted of Anatolia, Eastern Thrace, Mesopotamia, the Levant, and most of the Arabian Peninsula.

The line was disrupted during World War I when Ottoman rulers joined forces with Germany. The line was attacked by Arab guerrillas led by Britain’s T.E. Lawrence, celebrated as “Lawrence of Arabia,” who were fighting for liberation from the Ottomans. At that time the line was 1,300 kilometres long and reached only to Medina, 400 kilometres short of Mecca. It was the only railway built and operated by the Ottoman Empire. It called for donations from the public and wealthy individuals to finance the project.

For decades the Damascus station stood empty but has opened as a museum for visitors who can admire the interior architecture, buy guidebooks at a stall and sip coffee at the café before strolling to the nearby 18th-century Ottoman Souq al-Hamidiyeh, the largest market in Syria. It is located within the walled city of Damascus and offers the whole range of goods from food to clothing to brooms and tools.

Two sections of the main rail line remain in service: from Amman in Jordan to Damascus and from the phosphate mines near Ma’an in Jordan to the Gulf of Aqaba for the export of output. There have been numerous plans to revive the Hijaz rail network. While the Ottomans ruled the lands where the original rail line was located, building and operating a railroad was a domestic endeavour. This changed with the collapse of the empire in 1918 and its lands were divided between the war’s colonial victors. France occupied Lebanon and Syria; Britain took Palestine, Iraq and the Trucial sheikhdoms while the Ibn Saud dynasty took over Arabia with the blessings of Washington.

The most recent agreement on Hijaz was announced on June 9 of this year when Saudi Arabia and Turkey signed rail and logistics cooperation agreements to create a Gulf–Europe transport corridor to connect Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and ultimately Oman and provide an overland route to replace the currently conflicted Strait of Hormuz.

Engineers have mapped potential routes and the logistics of reconstruction as officials have studied the provision of security for tracks, trains and stations as well as the imposition of immigration and customs controls. It is estimated once these issues are settled, construction could take four to five years. The revived route would run from Saudi Arabia to Jordan’s Red Sea port of Aqaba, then continue north through Amman, Damascus, and Aleppo before entering Turkey and linking with Europe. Turkish officials openly say they have adopted this project to sideline and exclude Israel which has promoted the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor plan which would make Israel a regional transit hub connecting India and the Gulf to Europe. Israel’s current bid to assume this role has been scuppered by its onslaught on Gaza, harsh crackdown on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, and collaboration with the US in the disastrous war on Iran. The consequences of Israel’s actions were foreseen by anyone caring to make the effort.

Revival of the Hijaz railway is nothing new. In 2009, Ankara called on interested regional states to restore the line and announced plans to renew the Turkish section. Saudi Arabia also began investing in domestic rail lines such as the completed Haramain High-Speed Railway linking Mecca and Medina, a route included in the historic Hijaz railway’s original route.

Constructing and operating the railroad will require harmonisation of regulations across multiple states, as well as the establishment of security protocols. Syria, through which most of the railway would pass, is emerging from civil war. The country faces the twin challenges of stabilisation and reconstruction, with costs estimated at more than $200 billion. Damascus must invest in basic infrastructure, housing, and public services before committing to the railway. The cost of rebuilding the historic Hijaz rail route between Turkey’s Gaziantep and Syria’s Aleppo alone is estimated at $100 million. So far, there is no funding for the project.

Photo: X