Obour

Obour, Arabic for the Crossing, is a city in the Qalyubia Governorate about 35 kilometres north-east of Cairo, with 142,955 residents. It is named to honour the crossing of the Bar Lev Line by the Egyptian Army during Operation Badr in 1973, part of the October War. It is one of 16 new urban areas in Greater Cairo and is designated an industrial zone that houses a number of factories. It is considered a second-generation city, established by a prime ministerial decision of 1990, and it lies 9 to 15 kilometres to the right of the Cairo-Bilbeis Desert Road. Its population is expected to reach 500,000 when its growth is complete.