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 Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005.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. Influenced by major uprisings that began elsewhere in the region, antigovernment protests broke out in the southern province of Da'ra in March 2011 and spread to other Syrian cities. Protesters called for the repeal of the restrictive Emergency Law allowing arrests without charge, the legalization of political parties, and the removal of corrupt local officials. The government responded with a mix of force and concessions, including the repeal of the Emergency Law, but as of mid-April 2011 had not succeeded in quelling protests.

Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey

slightly larger than North Dakota

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

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

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

dust storms, sandstorms

deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water

there are 41 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (2010 est.)

22,517,750 (July 2010 est.)

23.99 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

3.68 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

-11.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

Aleppo 2.985 million; DAMASCUS (capital) 2.527 million; Hims 1.276 million; Hamah 854,000 (2009)

2.94 children born/woman (2011 est.)

less than 0.1% (2001 est.)

fewer than 500 (2003 est.)

fewer than 200 (2003 est.)

urban: 94% of population

rural: 84% of population

total: 89% of population

urban: 6% of population

rural: 16% of population

total: 11% of population (2008)

urban: 96% of population

rural: 95% of population

total: 96% of population

urban: 4% of population

rural: 5% of population

total: 4% of population (2008)

Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%

Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)

Arabic (official), Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian (widely understood); French, English (somewhat understood)

republic under an authoritarian regime

14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah (Latakia), Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq (Damascus), Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus

17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)

Independence Day, 17 April (1946)

mixed legal system of civil and Islamic law (for family courts)

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

18 years of age; universal

unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-Shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)

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)

Arab Human Rights Organization in Syria or AHRO; Damascus Declaration Group (a broad alliance of secular, religious, and Kurdish opposition groups); National Salvation Front (alliance between former Vice President Abd al-Halim KHADDAM and other small opposition groups in exile; formerly included the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood); Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression [Mazin DARWISH]; Syrian Human Rights Organization [Muhanad al-HASANI]; Syrian Human Rights Society or HRAS [Fayez FAWAZ]; Syrian Muslim Brotherhood or SMB [Muhammad Riyad al-SHAQFAH] (operates in exile in London)

ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, 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, WTO (observer)

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; two small, green, five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; the band colors derive from the Arab Liberation flag and represent oppression (black), overcome through bloody struggle (red), to be replaced by a bright future (white); identical to the former flag of the United Arab Republic (1958-1961) where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; the current design dates to 1980

Syrian economic growth remained in the 4-5% range in 2008-10 even though 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 began 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.

$107.4 billion (2010 est.)

$104 billion (2009 est.)

$98.13 billion (2008 est.)

$59.33 billion (2010 est.)

5.527 million (2010 est.)

16.6% of GDP (2010 est.)

29.8% of GDP (2010 est.)

28.1% of GDP (2009 est.)

5% (31 December 2009)

5% (31 December 2008)

10.04% (31 December 2009 est.)

10.19% (31 December 2008 est.)

$21.6 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$19.53 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$161 billion (31 December 2009)

$147.5 billion (31 December 2008)

$27.14 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$23.58 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk

petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, cement, oil seeds crushing, car assembly

36.5 billion kWh (2007 est.)

27.35 billion kWh (2007 est.)

1.4 billion kWh (2007)

400,400 bbl/day (2009 est.)

252,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)

155,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)

58,710 bbl/day (2007 est.)

2.5 billion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

6.04 billion cu m (2008 est.)

6.18 billion cu m (2008 est.)

140 million cu m (2008 est.)

240.7 billion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$649 million (2010 est.)

$394 million (2009 est.)

$12.84 billion (2010 est.)

$11.76 billion (2009 est.)

crude oil, minerals, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, textiles, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat

Iraq 30.22%, Lebanon 12.21%, Germany 8.89%, Egypt 6.8%, Saudi Arabia 5.04%, Italy 4.55% (2009)

$13.57 billion (2010 est.)

$12.62 billion (2009 est.)

machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper

Saudi Arabia 10.1%, China 9.95%, Turkey 6.97%, Egypt 6.44%, UAE 4.97%, Italy 4.93%, Russia 4.92%, Germany 4.38%, Lebanon 4.12% (2009)

$17.96 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$17.44 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$7.682 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$7.359 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Syrian pounds (SYP) per US dollar -

3.871 million (2009)

9.697 million (2009)

state-run television and radio broadcast networks; state operates 2 TV networks and a satellite channel; roughly two-thirds of Syrian homes have a satellite dish providing access to foreign TV broadcasts; 3 state-run radio channels; first private radio station launched in 2005; private radio broadcasters prohibited from transmitting news or political content (2007)

4.469 million (2009)

gas 3,161 km; oil 1,997 km (2010)

900 km (navigable but not economically significant) (2010)

Baniyas, Latakia, Tartus

Syrian Armed Forces: Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Navy, Syrian Arab Air and Air Defense Forces (includes Air Defense Command) (2008)

18 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 21 months (18 months in the Syrian Arab Navy); women are not conscripted but may volunteer to serve (2010)

5.9% of GDP (2005 est.)

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

a transit point for opiates, hashish, and cocaine bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls and bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money laundering