This information is password protected. To view it please enter the password below:


About Syria

Syria

Introduction

Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French administered the area as Syria until granting it independence in 1946. The new country lacked political stability, however, and experienced a series of military coups during its first decades. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In September 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the Socialist Ba'th Party and the minority Alawite sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional peace talks over its return. Following the death of President al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in July 2000. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah. In May 2007 Bashar al-ASAD was elected to his second term as president.

Geography

Location

Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey
Geographic Coordinates: 35 00 N, 38 00 E

Area

Total Area: 185,180 sq km Rank: 88
Land Area: 183,630 sq km
Water Area: 1,550 sq km
Note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
Comparison: slightly larger than North Dakota
Land Boundaries: 2,253 km
Bordering Countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km
Coastline: 193 km

Climate

mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus

Terrain

primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west

Elevations

Lowest Point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m
Highest Point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m

Natural Resources

petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower

Land Use

Arable land: 24.8%
Permanent Crops: 4.47%
Other: 70.73% (2005)
Irrigated Land: 13,330 sq km (2003)
Renewable Water Resources: 46.1 cu km (1997)
Total Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural): 19.95 cu km/yr (3%/2%/95%)
Freshwater Withdrawal Per Capita: 1,048 cu m/yr (2000)

Environment

Natural Hazards: dust storms, sandstorms
Environmental Issues: deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water
Environmental Agreements: Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

Geography Notes

there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 2005 est.)

People

Population: 21,762,978 Rank: 52
in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2010 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 years: 36.4% (male 4,063,367/female 3,864,099)
15-64 years: 59.9% (male 6,628,644/female 6,406,864)
65 years and over: 3.7% (male 372,172/female 427,832) (2010 est.)
Median Age: 21.3 years

Population Growth

Growth Rate: 2.006% (2010 est.) Rank: 59
Birth Rate: 25 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) Rank: 72
Death Rate: 3.72 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) Rank: 209
Net Migration Rate: NA

Urbanization

Urban Population: 54% of total population (2008)
Rate of Urbanization: 3.1% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Life and Death

Infant Mortality Rate: 16.69 deaths/1,000 live births Rank: 119
Life Expectancy at Birth: 74.22 years Rank: 92
Fertility Rate: 3.02 children born/woman (2010 est.) Rank: 67

Health and Disease

HIV/AIDS - Adult Prevalence Rate: less than 0.1% (2001 est.) Rank: 156
People living with HIV/AIDS: fewer than 500 (2003 est.) Rank: 149
HIV/AIDS Deaths: fewer than 200 (2003 est.) Rank: 116

Nationality and Culture

Noun: Syrian(s)
Adjective: Syrian
Ethnic Groups: Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%
Religion: Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)
Languages: Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood

Education

Literacy (Meaning, age 15 and over can read and write): 79.6% Male: 86% Female: 73.6% (2004 census)
Education expenditures: 3.9% of GDP (1999) Rank: 110

Government

Country Name

Conventional Long Form: Syrian Arab Republic
Conventional Short Form: Syria
Local Long Form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah
Local Short Form: Suriyah
Formerly: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
Government Type: republic under an authoritarian military-dominated regime
Capital: Damascus Geographic Coordinates: 33 30 N, 36 18 E

Administrative divisions

14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah (Latakia), Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq (Damascus), Tartus
Independence: 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
National holiday: Independence Day, 17 April (1946)
Constitution: 13 March 1973
Legal system: based on a combination of French and Ottoman civil law; Islamic law is used in the family court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Chief of State: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Farouk al-SHARA (since 11 February 2006) oversees foreign policy; Vice President Najah al-ATTAR (since 23 March 2006) oversees cultural policy
Head of Government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003); Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdallah al-DARDARI (since 14 June 2005)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
Elections: president approved by popular referendum for a second seven-year term (no term limits); referendum last held on 27 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2014); the president appoints the vice presidents, prime minister, and deputy prime ministers
Election Results: Bashar al-ASAD approved as president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.6%

Legislative Branch

unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-Shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
Elections: last held on 22-23 April 2007 (next to be held in 2011)
Election Results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NPF 172, independents 78

Judicial branch

Supreme Judicial Council (appoints and dismisses judges; headed by the president); national level - Supreme Constitutional Court (adjudicates electoral disputes and rules on constitutionality of laws and decrees; justices appointed for four-year terms by the president); Court of Cassation; Appeals Courts (Appeals Courts represent an intermediate level between the Court of Cassation and local level courts); local level - Magistrate Courts; Courts of First Instance; Juvenile Courts; Customs Courts; specialized courts - Economic Security Courts (hear cases related to economic crimes); Supreme State Security Court (hear cases related to national security); Personal Status Courts (religious; hear cases related to marriage and divorce)
Political parties and leaders:
legal parties: National Progressive Front or NPF [President Bashar al-ASAD, Dr. Suleiman QADDAH] (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party [President Bashar al-ASAD]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallah Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Arab Socialist Union or ASU [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Syrian Social Nationalist Party [Ali QANSU]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL])
opposition parties not legally recognized: Communist Action Party; National Democratic Front [Hasan Abdul AZIM, spokesman] (includes five parties - Arab Democratic Socialist Union Party [Hasan Abdul AZIM], Arab Socialist Movement, Democratic Ba'th Party [Ibrahim MAHKOS], People's Democratic Party [Riad al TURK], Revolutionary Workers' Party [Abdul Hafeez al HAFEZ])
Kurdish parties (considered illegal): Azadi Party [Kheirudin MURAD]; Future Party [Masha'l TAMMO]; Kurdish Democratic Alliance (includes four parties); Kurdish Democratic Front (includes three parties); Yekiti Party [Hasan SALEH, Fu'ad ALEYKO]
other parties: Nahda Party [Abdul Aziz al MISLET]; Syrian Democratic Party [Mustafa QALAAJI]
Political Pressure Groups and Leaders: Damascus Declaration National Council [Riyad SEIF, secretary general] (a broad alliance of opposition groups and individuals including: Committee for Revival of Civil Society [Michel KILO, Riyad SEIF]; Communist Action Party [Fateh JAMOUS]; Kurdish Democratic Alliance; Kurdish Democratic Front; Liberal Nationalists' Movement; National Democratic Rally; and Syrian Human Rights Society or HRAS [Fawed FAWUZ]); National Salvation Front (alliance between former Vice President Abd al-Halim KHADDAM and other small opposition groups); Syrian Muslim Brotherhood or SMB [Sadr al-Din al-BAYANUNI] (operates in exile in London; endorsed the Damascus Declaration, but is not an official member)
International Organization Participation: ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Flag Description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small, green, five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; the current design dates to 1980
Note: similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has an Arabic inscription centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band

Economy

Economy Overview: Syrian economic growth slowed to 1.8% in 2009 as the global economic crisis affected oil prices and the economies of Syria's key export partners and sources of investment. Damascus has implemented modest economic reforms in the past few years, including cutting lending interest rates, opening private banks, consolidating all of the multiple exchange rates, raising prices on some subsidized items, most notably gasoline and cement, and establishing the Damascus Stock Exchange - which was set to begin operations in 2009. In addition, President ASAD signed legislative decrees to encourage corporate ownership reform, and to allow the Central Bank to issue Treasury bills and bonds for government debt. Nevertheless, the economy remains highly controlled by the government. Long-run economic constraints include declining oil production, high unemployment, rising budget deficits, and increasing pressure on water supplies caused by heavy use in agriculture, rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and water pollution.

Gross Domestic Product

GDP (purchasing power parity): $101 billion (2009 est.) Rank: 67
GDP - real growth rate: 5% (2009 est.) Rank: 29
GDP - per capita (PPP): $4,600 (2009 est.) Rank: 149
GDP - Composition by Sector: Agriculture: 17.7% Industry: 26.5% Services: 55.9% (2009 est.)

Labor Force

Labor Force: 5.382 million (2009 est.) Rank: 70
Labor force - by occupation: Agriculture: 17% Industry: 16% Services: 67% (2008 est.)
Unemployment Rate: 8.5% (2009 est.) Rank: 97

Poverty

Population below poverty line: 11.9% (2006 est.)

Transnational Issues

International Disputes: Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied with the almost 1,000-strong UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) patrolling a buffer zone since 1964; lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary, portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000, Lebanon has claimed Shab'a Farms in the Golan Heights; 2004 Agreement and pending demarcation settles border dispute with Jordan; approximately two million Iraqis have fled the conflict in Iraq with the majority taking refuge in Syria and Jordan
Refugees and internally displaced persons - refugees (country of origin): 1-1.4 million (Iraq); 522,100 (Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA))
International Displaced Persons: 305,000 (most displaced from Golan Heights during 1967 Arab-Israeli War) (2007)

Want to know more? Show Full Profile