In Abid Street of Damascus, a modest office overlooks glittery gold shops and busy, tempting food outlets. Amidst such lively setting, a low-profile showcase with scientific tools and skulls seems out of place until one sees an elegant man inside. His inviting eyes attract the people to enter his shop and be recognized. The man in the late 50s is leading Syrian-Armenian businessman Gabriel Jambarji.

From his modest office equipped four wooden chairs, a table, a small library and a telephone set, he runs three factories of science laboratories. He manages marketing and distribution of his products not only within Syria but also elsewhere in Europe, Canada and the Gulf region.

Jambarji may be a billionaire today but he was born to a poor family in Aleppo, where most Armenians came to escape the First World War bloodshed. His grandmother brought his five-year-old father to Syria from Cilicia in Gaziantep, Turkey.

“My family managed to survive as their city was close to Syria,” he recalls his grandmother repeatedly telling him so.

“Many died of starvation, cold and diseases while walking naked and barefooted for several months to find a safe patch of land in Syria,” says Jambarji recalling bitter days in Armenia’s history.

Over the years, some 200,000-strong Syrian-Armenians have integrated well in their newfound Middle Eastern home. Damascus not only gave them nationality but also allowed to open Armenian schools and establish associations. They were also free to keep traditions of the Eastern Christianity alive.

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