Official name Syrian Arab Republic, Arabic Al-Jumhuriyah al-Arabiyah as-Suriyah
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الجمهورية العربية السورية Al-Ǧumhūriyyah al-ʿArabiyyah as-Sūriyyah Syrian Arab Republic |
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| Motto: none | |||||
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Anthem: Homat el Diyar ("Guardians of the Homeland") |
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Capital (largest city) |
Damascus 33°30′N 36°18′E |
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| Official language | Arabic | ||||
| Government | Presidential republic | ||||
| - President | Bashar al-Assad | ||||
| - Prime Minister | Muhammad Naji al-Otari | ||||
| Independence | from France | ||||
| - Declared (1) | September 19361 | ||||
| - Declared (2) | January 1, 1944 | ||||
| - Recognized | April 17, 1946 | ||||
| Area | |||||
| - Total |
185,180 km² (88th) 71,479 sq mi |
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| - Water (%) | 0.06 | ||||
| Population | |||||
| - July 2005 estimate | 19,043,000 (55th) | ||||
| - Density |
103/km² (96th) 267/sq mi |
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| GDP (PPP) | 2005 estimate | ||||
| - Total | $71.74 billion (65th) | ||||
| - Per capita | $5,348 (101st) | ||||
| HDI (2003) | 0.721 (medium) (106th) | ||||
| Currency | Syrian pound (SYP) | ||||
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) | ||||
| - Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) | ||||
| Internet TLD | .sy | ||||
| Calling code | +963 | ||||
| 1 The Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence (1936), not ratified by France. | |||||
Syria (Arabic: سوريا or, since 2005, سورية), officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic: الجمهورية العربية السورية), is a country in the Middle East. Historically, Syria, or The
Levant as the region has sometimes been called in English, has often been taken to include the territories of Lebanon, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, and parts of Jordan, but excluding
the Jazira region in the north-east of the modern Syrian state. In this historic sense, the region is also known as Greater Syria or by the Arabic name Bilad al-Sham (بلاد الشام). By
Pliny's time, however, this larger Syria had been divided into a number of provinces under the Roman Empire (but politically independent from each other): Judaea (or "Judea" and later renamed
Palestina in AD 135—the region corresponding to the modern states of Israel and Jordan and the Palestinian territories) in the extreme southwest, Phoenicia corresponding to Lebanon, with
Damascena to the inland side of Phoenicia, Coele-Syria (or "Hollow Syria") south of the Eleutheris river, and Mesopotamia.
History
Ancient Syria
Syria holds the imprints of the world's oldest civilizations, and has always been in the centre of all Arab countries, through influence also known as "the big brother" some dating back to the fourth millennium BC. The names of sites evoke the story of humankind at its beginnings: Mari, Ebla, Ugarit, Amrit, Apamea, Doura-Europos, Palmyra, Bosra, Damascus, Aleppo, Hama, Latakia…
Agriculture first appeared in Syria thousands of years ago, when man discovered the possibility of growing hundreds of new plants from seed.
In ancient Syria, the secrets of metallurgy were also discovered, the possibility of hammering bronze and copper into shapes that would serve domestic, military and aesthetic uses.
Archaeologists have demonstrated that Syria was the center of one of the most ancient civilizations on earth. Around the excavated city of Ebla in north-eastern Syria, discovered in 1975, a great Semitic empire spread from the Red Sea north to Turkey and east to Mesopotamia from 2500 to 2400 B.C.
Syria was occupied successively by Canaanites, Hebrews, Arameans, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Armenians, Romans, Nabataeans, Byzantines, Arabs, and, in part, Crusaders before finally coming under the control of the Ottoman Turks. Syria is significant in the history of Christianity; Paul was converted on the Road to Damascus and joined the first organized Christian Church in Antioch in ancient Syria (now in Turkey), from which he left on many of his missionary journeys. Syria acted as cultural hub that took in influences from many sources and sent them out to other parts of the empire and Damascus achieved a glory unrivaled among cities of the eighth century.
French mandate
Ottoman control ended when the forces of the Arab revolt entered Damascus in 1918 towards the end of the First World War. An independent Arab Kingdom of Syria was established under King Faisal of the Hashemite family, who later became King of Iraq. However, his rule over Syria ended in July 1920 when French forces entered Syria to impose their League of Nations mandate.
With the fall of France in 1940, Syria came under the control of the Vichy Government until the United Kingdom and Free French occupied the country in July 1941. Continuing pressure from Syrian nationalist groups forced the French to evacuate their troops in April 1946, leaving the country in the hands of a republican government that had been formed during the mandate.
Independence
Syria first negotiated a treaty of independence with France in September of 1936. Hashim al-Atassi was the first president to be elected under a post-French minded constitution, effectively the first incarnation of the modern republic of Syria. However, France reneged on the treaty and refused to ratify it, and continued its presence in Syria until 1946. Shukri al-Quwatli was elected President when Syria was granted independence from Vichy France jointly with Lebanon in 1943.
Syrian army’s role in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
The Syrian army played a limited role in the war. The young governments of Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq had genuine interest in restoring Arab claims to the area but largely lacked the means to do so.
The small number of troops that Syria deployed at the Palestinian border speaks for its limited goals. In May 1948, just before Syria sent its troops into Palestine, British intelligence estimated that Syria had no more than 4,500 men available to fight in Israel. the CIA in late June counted a “total of 2,500 effective men” stationed near the Syrian border, 1000 deployed in Palestine and 1,500 near it on the Syrian side.
Syria experienced defeat, the first of many, during its initial thrust into Palestine six days after the beginning of official hostilities on May 15.
In the Syrian press and parliament, the reaction to this defeat was immediate.
Syrian forces also established a foothold in the extreme northeastern corner of Palestine, just east of the Jewish settlement of Dan. Thus, Syria occupied three distinct enclaves within Palestine in the northern, central, and southern regions of the 1923 border. It would become part of the demilitarized zone following the 1949 armistice signed between Syria and Israel and remains contested between the two sides to this day.
Other than the two offensive operations to grab villages across the Jordan River, the Syrian army remained largely inactive during the 1948 war. His battle against the notion of a monarchist Greater Syria forced him to sharpen his defense of republicanism. He insisted that it was the true expression of the people’s will and the natural order of things in Syria. All the same, he could not tell the Syrian public that he was for Syria first, or that Syria was too weak to rescue Palestine. Although he was known as the “hero of Syrian independence,” he had also sworn never to raise the Syrian flag above that of the Arab nation.” These conflicting loyalties forced Quwatli to dissemble during the war.
Quwatli helped turn the 1948 war into an Arab civil war, which Israeli forces ably exploited to gain control of more territory. But Syria, the country that pushed hardest for war, considered itself the beating heart of Arabism, and was the last to sign an armistice with Israel, was perhaps hardest hit by the pervasive sense of popular disappointment and the belief among the military that its leadership had failed and let them down.
Military coups
A series of military coups, begun in 1949, undermined civilian rule and led to army colonel Adib Shishakli's seizure of power in December 1949. During the first four years following the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, the United States attempted to solve the Arab-Israeli conflict by settling Palestinian refugees in Syria. At the height of U.S. - Syrian negotiations during the summer of 1952, the U.S. contemplated paying the Syrian government $400,000,000 dollars in exchange for settling up to 500,000 Palestinians in the fertile plains of the Jazira that lie between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Syria's North-east. Leftist forces in Syria, spearheaded by Akram Hourani's Arab Socialist Party and the Ba'ath Party, were vociferous opponents of such a deal, which they claimed was nothing but a sell out of the Palestinian right of return. With the unification of Hourani's Socialist Party with the Ba'ath in December 1952 and their vain attempt to overthrow the Syrian regime, Shishakli was forced to shelve any notion of accepting either a western defense alliance or settling Palestinian refugees in Syria.
Civilian rule: 1954–1958
After the overthrow of President Shishakli in a 1954 coup, continued political maneuvering supported by competing factions in the military eventually brought Arab nationalist and socialist elements to power.
Syria's political instability during the years following the 1954 coup, the parallelism of Syrian and Egyptian policies, and the appeal of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser's leadership in the wake of the 1956 Suez crisis created support in Syria for union with Egypt. Following a military coup on September 28, 1961, Syria seceded, reestablishing itself as the Syrian Arab Republic. Instability characterized the next 18 months, with various coups culminating on March 8, 1963, in the installation by leftist Syrian Army officers of the National Council of the Revolutionary Command (NCRC), a group of military and civilian officials who assumed control of all executive and legislative authority. The takeover was engineered by members of the Arab Socialist Resurrection Party (Ba'ath Party), which had been active in Syria and other Arab countries since the late 1940s.
Ba'ath takeover
The Ba'ath takeover in Syria followed a Ba'ath coup in Iraq the previous month. Thereafter, the Ba'ath regimes in Syria and Iraq began to work for bilateral unity. Israel had captured the Golan Heights from Syria and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt. In March 1972, to broaden the base of his government, Assad formed the National Progressive Front, a coalition of parties led by the Ba'ath Party, and elections were held to establish local councils in each of Syria's 14 governorates.
October war
Later in 1973, the Yom Kippur War broke out, with "Syria mounted air attacks and heavy artillery shelling, and moved three divisions with some 1,400 tanks into the" Golan Heights to try and reclaim them from Israel. Despite some initial successes, Syria's military was once again crushed by IDF. Incidentally, Israel still held the military advantage over Syria at the end of the Yom Kippur war. Subsequent shuttle negotiations by Henry Kissinger resulted in Syria regaining control of part of the Golan, which the government portrayed as proof of victory.
Involvement in Lebanon
In early 1976, Syrian troops entered Lebanon to stop the civil war, though Syria at first entered on the side of the Maronites. Syria sent troops that later became the main core of the Arab Deterrent Force (ADF) established by the Arab League in October 1976. Syria brought the warring factions together in the Taif Agreement to end the civil war. Syria helped the Lebanese government reestablishes control over much of the country. In April 26, 2005, Syria withdrew all of its troops from Lebanon, after the assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Al-Hariri.
About one million Syrian workers came into Lebanon after the civil war ended, to find employment and pursue business opportunities.
Gulf War
Syria's 1991 participation in the U.S.-led multinational coalition aligned against Saddam Hussein marked a dramatic watershed in Syria's relations both with other Arab states and with the West. Syria participated in the multilateral Middle East Peace Conference in Madrid in October 1991, and during the 1990s engaged in direct, face-to-face negotiations with Israel.
In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Syrian government began cooperation with U.S. in the global war against terrorism. However, Syria opposed the Iraq war in March 2003, and bilateral relations with the U.S. swiftly deteriorated. Bush signed into law the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003, which provided for the imposition of a series of sanctions against Syria if Syria did not "end its support for Palestinian terrorist groups, end its military and security presence in Lebanon, cease its pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, and meet its obligations under US interpretation of United Nations Security Council resolutions regarding the stabilization and reconstruction of Iraq." In May 2004, the President claimed that Syria had not met these conditions and implemented sanctions that prohibit the export to Syria of items on the U.S. Munitions List and Commerce Control List, the export to Syria of U.S. products except for food and medicine, and the taking off from or landing in the United States of Syrian government-owned aircraft. At the same time, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced its intention to order U.S. financial institutions to sever correspondent accounts with the Commercial Bank of Syria based on money-laundering concerns, pursuant to Section 311 of the USA PATRIOT Act. Acting under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the President also authorized the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to freeze assets belonging to certain Syrian individuals and government entities.
The European Union uses a method to bring about change in Syria that can be likened to soft power, using neither military nor economic force. Now that there is a chance that Turkey will join the EU, Syria could border the EU. Syria is required to make certain political and economic reforms in order for this process to come into effect. Many members of the Lebanese opposition and international observers alleged that Hariri was assassinated by Syria. On March 5, 2005, after intense international pressure, president Bashar al-Assad of Syria made a speech before the Syrian Parliament, where he announced that Syria would complete a full withdrawal from Lebanon by May of 2005, ending thereby a 30-year of military presence in this neighboring country.
Syrian troops withdrew from Lebanon on April 26, 2005 under intense pressure from the Lebanese opposition and the international community.
However, in December 2005 the UN's case against Syria came under serious scrutiny as questions were raised about the credibility of several of the main witnesses of the Mehlis investigation. Brammertz, unlike his predecessor Mehlis, has also chosen to be discreet about his findings — making his final conclusions all the more unpredictable — but he praised Syria's 'full co-operation' with the UN investigators. In stark contrast to the hostile nature of Mehlis, Brammertz has repeatedly praised Syria's "full co-operation" with UN investigators, and has even interviewed Assad personally as part of the investigation.
Relations with the US could be improving too - Condoleezza Rice praised Syria for their help in thwarting an attack on the US Embassy in Damascus in September 2006.
After the losses for Israel in that war, many members of the Israeli Government (the Interior Minister and Defence Minister) insisted Israel must start talking to Syria. Syria responded by offering unconditional peace talks in a German newspaper Der Spiegel, and again on the BBC weeks later.
Administrative divisions
Syria has fourteen governorates, or muhafazat (singular: muhafazah).
| Damascus Rif Dimashq Quneitra Dara As Suwayda Homs Tartous Latakia Hama Idlib Aleppo Ar Raqqah Dayr az Zawr Al Hasakah |
Syrian Major Cities
Damascus - Aleppo - Latakia - Homs - Hama
Other Cities
Al Hasakah - Dayr az Zawr - Ar Raqqah - Idlib - Dara -Suwayda - Tartous
Syrian Towns
Kamichli - Masyaf - Safita - Jableh - Al-Thawrah - Duma - Banias
Syrian Villages
Albaida- Marmarita- Mashta Alhelu Al-Nabk
Politics
Ostensibly, Syria is a parliamentary republic. The President's continuing strength is due also to the army's continued loyalty and the overbearing presence of Syria's large internal security apparatus.
Government
The Syrian constitution vests the Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party with leadership functions in the state and society and provides broad powers to the president.
Syria is one of the strongest defenders of religious freedoms in the Arab World.
Syria is one of the secular Arab states, with a strong separation of religion and state, and protection of religious minorities (around 11% of the country is Christian - one-third of Aleppo, the country's second city, is Christian, and 10% of the capital city is Christian).
In 2005, the Freedom House rated political rights in Syria as "7" (1 representing the most free and 7 the least free rating), civil liberties as "7" and gave it the freedom rating of "Not Free".
Geography
Syria consists mostly of arid plateau, although the northwest part of the country bordering the Mediterranean is fairly green. The Euphrates, Syria's most important river, crosses the country in the east. (See also List of cities in Syria.)
The climate in Syria is dry and hot, and winters are mild. (Discuss)
Syria is a middle-income, developing country with a diversified economy based on agriculture, industry, and energy. Despite a number of significant reforms and ambitious development projects of the early 1990s, as well as more modest reform efforts currently underway, Syria's economy still is slowed by large numbers of poorly performing public sector firms, low investment levels, and relatively low industrial and agricultural productivity.
Despite the mitigation of the severe drought that plagued the region in the late 1990s and the recovery of energy export revenues, Syria's economy faces serious challenges.
Taken as a whole, Syrian economic reform thus far has been incremental and gradual, with privatization not even on the distant horizon. In 2001, Syria legalized private banking.
Commerce has always been important to the Syrian economy, which benefited from the country's location along major east-west trade routes. Given the policies adopted from the 1960s through the late 1980s, Syria failed to join an increasingly interconnected global economy. In late 2001, however, Syria submitted a request to the World Trade Organization to begin the accession process. Syria had been an original contracting party of the former General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade but withdrew in 1951 because of Israel's joining. Syria is intent on signing an Association Agreement with the European Union that would entail significant trade liberalization.
The bulk of Syrian imports have been raw materials essential for industry, agriculture, equipment, and machinery.
Of Syria's 72,000 square miles (186,000 km²), roughly one-third is arable, with 80% of cultivated areas dependent on rainfall for water. Thanks to sustained capital investment, infrastructure development, subsidies of inputs, and price supports, Syria has gone from a net importer of many agricultural products to an exporter of cotton, fruits, vegetables, and other foodstuffs. One of the prime reasons for this turnaround has been the government's investment in huge irrigation systems in northern and northeastern Syria, part of a plan to increase irrigated farmland by 38% over the next decade.
Syria has produced heavy-grade oil from fields located in the northeast since the late 1960s. In the early 1980s, light-grade, low-sulphur oil was discovered near Dayr az Zawr in eastern Syria. This discovery relieved Syria of the need to import light oil to mix with domestic heavy crude in refineries. Although its oil reserves are small compared to those of many other Arab states, Syria's petroleum industry accounts for a majority of the country's export income. The government has successfully begun to work with international energy companies to develop Syria's promising natural gas reserves, both for domestic use and export. U.S. energy firm, ConocoPhillips, completed a large natural gas gathering and production facility for Syria in late 2000, and continued to serve as operator of the plant until December 2005. In 2003, Syria experienced some success in attracting U.S. Petroleum companies, signing an exploration deal with partners Devon Energy and Gulfsands and a seismic survey contract with Veritas.
Ad hoc economic liberalization continues to provide hope to Syria's private sector. Exchange-rate unification remains an elusive goal as pressure is building for Syria to harmonize its exchange rate system.
Given the poor development of its own capital markets and Syria's lack of access to international money and capital markets, monetary policy remains captive to the need to cover the fiscal deficit. Although in 2003 Syria lowered interest rates for the first time in 22 years and again in 2004, rates remain fixed by law. In a positive move in 2003, Syria canceled an old and troublesome law governing foreign currency exchange;
Syria has made progress in easing its heavy foreign debt burden through bilateral rescheduling deals with virtually all of its key creditors in Europe. In May 2005, Russia and Syria signed a deal that wrote off nearly three-quarters of Syria's debt to Russia, approximately €10.5 billion ($13 billion). The agreement left Syria with less than €3 billion (just over $3.6 billion) owed to Moscow. Half of it would be repaid over the next 10 years, while the rest would be paid into Russian accounts in Syrian banks and could be used for Russian investment projects in Syria and for buying Syrian products. Most Kurds reside in the northeast corner of Syria and many still speak the Kurdish language. The Assyrian Christians are also a notable minority (about 3%) that live in north and northeast Syria, and are included in the Arab population.
Religion
Syria's population is 90% Muslim and 10% Christian. Many Jews left Syria after agreement with the US in the 1990s allowed them to emigrate to Israel, although important small Jewish communities still exist in Damascus and Aleppo. Kurdish is widely spoken in the Kurdish regions of Syria.
Culture
Syria offered the world the Ugarit cuneiform, the root for the Phoenician alphabet, which dates back to the 14th century B.C.
Ancient Syria's cultural and artistic achievements and contributions are many.
Philip Hitti claims, "the scholars consider Syria as the teacher for the human characteristics," and Andrea Parrout writes, "each civilized person in the world should admit that he has two home countries: the one he was born in, and Syria."
Syria is a culturally rich country and has a traditional society. Syria is a living folklore.
Traditional Houses of the Old Cities in Damascus, Aleppo and the other Syrian cities are preserved and traditionally the living quarters are arranged around one or more courtyards, typically with a fountain in the middle supplied by spring water, and decorated with citrus trees, grape vines, and flowers arranged for the comfort of the family and entertaining guests.
Some Syrian Customs revolve around their crafts. Pottery - Syria has many natural clay deposits, which have been used for many centuries in the making of pottery. Jewelry - Jewelry has a long history in Syria.
Syria has a small but notable cinema industry, with production entirely in the hands of the state National Cinema Organisation, which employs film-makers as civil servants.
There was a private sector presence in the Syrian cinema industry until the end of the 1970s, but private investment has since preferred the more lucrative television serial business.
Although declining, Syria's world-famous handicraft industry still employs thousands.
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Eggelin Tomb Tower in Palmyra |
Saladin's grave in Damascus |
The Umayyad Mosque courtyard, Damascus |
Citadel of Aleppo |
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Roman theatre in Bosra |
Hama, Syria - a minaret of Al Nouri mosque |
Apamea, Syria |
Town Square of Sweida (As Suwayda) |
Holidays
| Date | English name | Local name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year's Day |
عيد راس السنة الميلادية ‘Īd Ra’s as-Sanät al-Mīlādīyä |
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| March 8 | March 8 Revolution |
ثورة الثامن من اذار Ṯaurät aṯ-Ṯāmin Āḏār |
Celebrates seizure of power by Ba'ath Party |
| March 21 | Mother's Day |
عيد الأم ‘Īd al-’Umm |
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| April 17 | Independence Day |
عيد الجلاء ‘Īd al-Ğalā’ |
Celebrates evacuation of last French troops |
| variable | Gregorian Easter |
عيد الفصح غريغوري ‘Īd al-Fiṣḥ Ġrīġūrī |
According to the Gregorian calendar |
| variable | Julian Easter |
عيد الفصح اليوليوسي ‘Īd al-Fiṣḥ al-Yūliyūsī |
According to the Julian calendar |
| May 1 | Labor day |
عيد العمال ‘Īd al-‘Ummāl |
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| May 6 | Martyr's Day |
عيد الشهداء ‘Īd aš-Šuhadā’ |
Anniversary of execution of Syrian nationalists in Damascus by the Turks |
| October 6 | October War |
حرب تشرين التحريرية Harb Teshreen Al-Tahririyyah |
Celebrating Yom Kippur War |
| December 25 | Christmas |
عيد الميلاد المجيد ‘Īd al-Mīlād al-Mağīd |
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| Dates following the lunar Islamic calendar | |||
| Dhul Hijja 10 | Eid al-Adha |
عيد الأضحى ‘Īd al-’Aḍḥà |
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| Shawwal 1 | Eid al-Fitr |
عيد الفطر ‘Īd al-Fiṭr |
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| Rabi`-ul-Awwal 12 | Mawlid |
المولد النبوي al-Maulid an-Nabawī |
Muhammad's birthday |
Fairs and festivals
| Festival/Fair | City | Month |
|---|---|---|
| Flower Festival | Latakia | April |
| Traditional Festival | Palmyra | May |
| International Flower Fair | Damascus | May |
| Vine Festival | As Suwayda | September |
| Cotton Festival | Aleppo | September |
| Damascus International Fair | Damascus | September |
| Festival of Love | Lattakia | September |
| Bosra Festival | Bosra | September |
| Film and Theatre Festival | Damascus | November |
Miscellaneous topics
Communications in Syria Foreign relations of Syria List of prominent Syrian people Military of Syria Transportation in Syria Scouting in SyriaReferences and footnotes
^ "Arab-Israeli Conflict." Retrieved on 2006-07-27.See also Freedom in the World 2006, List of indices of freedom ^
Government
Syrian Ministry of Tourism Syrian Ministry of Economy and Trade Syrian Ministry of Industry Syrian Ministry of Communications and Technology Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Syrian Ministry of Expatriates Syrian Ministry of Interior - Civil Affairs Syrian Ministry of Education Syrian Ministry of Higher Education Syrian Ministry of Information Syrian Ministry of Finance Syrian Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Syrian Ministry of Justice The Syrian Baath Party Syrian Parliament Syrian Ministry of Transport Syrian Ministry of Health Syrian Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform Syrian Ministry of Local Administration and Environment The Syrian Central Bureau of Statistics Syrian Lebanese Higher Council Syrian Telecom Syrian RailwaysCulture
Akhawia Syria Syrian Ministry of Culture Creative Syria The Syrian Culture, Arts and History Center The Syrian National Film Organization Syrian General Organization of Radio and TV Al Assad National Library The Syrian Academy of Gastronomy - Inactive as of Aug/27/2006 America-Mideast Educational and Training Services - Syria Syria Art The Online Museum of Syrian History French Cultural Center in Damascus Cervantes Institute - Damascus Goethe Institute in Damascus The French Institute of the Near Orient in Damascus The American Language Centre in DamascusEconomic
Syrian Young Entrepreneurs Association Syrian Economic Society Central Bank of Syria The Commercial Bank of Syria The Real Estate Bank of Syria Federation of Syrian Chambers of Commerce The Damascus Chamber of Commerce The Damascus Chamber of Industry The Aleppo Chamber of Industry Syrian European Business Center Syrian Arab Airlines European Business Center for Training and Development - Syria The Tharwa Project Syrian think tank Syria Steps Economic magazine in Arabic and English AL-IQTISSADIYA Economic Newspaper in ArabicNews
SANA Syrian Arab News Agency Government News Agency Aljaml online magazine Independent online magazine updated continuously from Damascus Abyad wa aswad : Black and white Independent weekly magazine in Arabic Tishreen Newspaper in Arabic Al-Thawra Newspaper in Arabic Cham Press A complete roundup of news about Syria (in Arabic & English) The Syria News Wire Live, independent news from Syria and Lebanon Syria Times English-language daily The Syria Report Business News Syria Mirror Independent Syrian publication Special report: Syria and Lebanon from Guardian.co.uk Syria Today Magazine First independent Syrian current affairs magazine in English About Syria News and InformationEducation
University of Damascus Aleppo University University of Kalamoon Ittihad University Mamoun Private University for Science and Technology Wadi German-Syrian University The Syrian Virtual University A unique experiment in the Arab world Al-Baath University Public University in Homs Syrian Studies Association Arab European University Arabic universities forum General website for all students . Computer Science in Syria A website for Computer Science students in Syria. HIBA Higher Institute of Business AdministrationSyrian cities
Damascus Online Everything Syrian Aleppo Online Homs Online Guide to Homs in Central Syria Mashta AL Helou Information and photos about this nice village Tartous Info about the Syrian Coastal city Marmarita Qamishli Dar'aa capital of the Hawran region Suwaida in southern Syria Hama major city in central Syria Qarah Sadad Amrit Phoenician city on Mediterranean MuħardehOverviews
Syria Gate Syria Go Arab Gateway - Syria Syria101 The Syrian Wiki (manged and maintained by Syrians) Arab Links - Syria directory category in Arabic BBC News Country Profile - Syria CIA World Factbook - Syria Syria at the Open Directory Project Syrian Web Guide directory categoryOther
HI-SYRIA.COM, A Place To Make Friends Around Syria Syrian History The National Council of Truth, Justice and Reconciliation in Syria (SYNATIC) Syrian Arab Association for SOS Children's Villages ICARDA (International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas) - Aleppo Syrian main cities satellite views and latitude and longitude coordinates| Syria Portal |
Syria travel guide from Wikitravel
Look up Syria inWiktionary, the free dictionary.
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Algeria • Bahrain • Comoros • Djibouti • Egypt • Iraq • Jordan • Kuwait • Lebanon • Libya • Mauritania • Morocco • Oman • Palestine • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Somalia • Sudan • Syria • Tunisia • United Arab Emirates • Yemen |
Bahrain • Cyprus • Egypt • Iran • Iraq • Israel • Jordan • Kuwait • Lebanon • Oman • Palestinian territories • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Syria • Turkey • United Arab Emirates • Yemen
1 Transcontinental country.
v • d • e Countries bordering the Mediterranean SeaAlbania • Algeria • Bosnia and Herzegovina • Croatia • Cyprus • Egypt • France • Greece • Israel • Italy • Lebanon • Libya • Malta • Monaco • Montenegro • Morocco • Slovenia • Spain • Syria • Tunisia • Turkey
For dependent and other territories, see Dependent territory and List of unrecognized countries.
v • d • e Countries in Southwest AsiaArmenia • Azerbaijan • Bahrain • Cyprus • Georgia • Iran • Iraq • Israel • Jordan • Kuwait Lebanon • Oman • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Syria • Turkey • United Arab Emirates • Yemen
v • d • e Countries of AsiaAfghanistan • Armenia • Azerbaijan • Bahrain • Bangladesh • Bhutan • Brunei • Cambodia • People's Republic of China • Cyprus • East Timor • Georgia • India • Indonesia • Iran • Iraq • Israel • Japan • Jordan • Kazakhstan • Kuwait • Kyrgyzstan • Laos • Lebanon • Malaysia • Maldives • Mongolia • Myanmar • Nepal • North Korea • Oman • Pakistan • Philippines • Qatar • Russia • Saudi Arabia • Singapore • South Korea • Sri Lanka • Syria • Tajikistan • Thailand • Turkey • Turkmenistan • United Arab Emirates • Uzbekistan • Vietnam • Yemen
For dependent and other territories, see Dependent territory and List of unrecognized countries.
v • d • e Organization of the Islamic ConferenceAfghanistan • Albania • Algeria • Azerbaijan • Bahrain • Bangladesh • Benin • Burkina Faso • Brunei • Cameroon • Chad • Comoros • Côte d'Ivoire • Djibouti • Egypt • Gabon • Gambia • Guinea • Guinea-Bissau • Guyana • Indonesia • Iran • Iraq • Jordan • Kuwait • Kazakhstan • Kyrgyzstan • Lebanon • Libya • Maldives • Malaysia • Mali • Mauritania • Morocco • Mozambique • Niger • Nigeria • Oman • Pakistan • Palestine • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Senegal • Sierra Leone • Somalia • Sudan • Surinam • Syria • Tajikistan • Turkey • Tunisia • Togo • Turkmenistan • Uganda • Uzbekistan • United Arab Emirates • Yemen
Observer countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina • Central African Republic • Russia • Thailand • Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
Observer Muslim organizations and communities: Moro National Liberation Front
Observer international organizations: Economic Cooperation Organization • Organization of African Unity • League of Arab States • Non-Aligned Movement • United Nations
v • d • e Semitic-speaking nations
Arabic and Maltese
Algeria • Bahrain • Egypt • Iraq • Jordan • Kuwait • Lebanon • Libya • Malta • Mauritania • Morocco • Oman •
Palestine • Qatar • Saudi Arabia • Sudan • Syria • Tunisia • United Arab Emirates • Western Sahara • Yemen
Northwest Semitic (Aramaic and Hebrew)
Iraq • Israel • Syria
South Semitic
Eritrea • Ethiopia • Oman • Yemen
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