Syria

• 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

mean elevation:

514 m

lowest point:

unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -208 m

highest point:

Mount Hermon (Jabal a-Shayk) 2,814 m

• significant population density along the Mediterranean coast;
• larger concentrations found in the major cities of Damascus, Aleppo (the country's largest city), and Hims (Homs);
• more than half of the population lives in the coastal plain, the province of Halab, and the Euphrates River valley

note: the ongoing civil war has altered the population distribution

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

party to:

Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Environmental Modification

• the capital of Damascus - located at an oasis fed by the Barada River - is thought to be one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities;
• there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights (2017)

noun:

Syrian(s)

adjective:

Syrian

• significant population density along the Mediterranean coast;
• larger concentrations found in the major cities of Damascus, Aleppo (the country's largest city), and Hims (Homs);
• more than half of the population lives in the coastal plain, the province of Halab, and the Euphrates River valley

note: the ongoing civil war has altered the population distribution

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.88 male(s)/female

total population:

1 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

conventional long form:

Syrian Arab Republic

conventional short form:

Syria

local long form:

Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah

local short form:

Suriyah

former:

United Arab Republic (with Egypt)

etymology:

• name ultimately derived from the ancient Assyrians who dominated northern Mesopotamia, but whose reach also extended westward to the Levant;
• over time, the name came to be associated more with the western area

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

history:

several previous; latest issued 15 February 2012, passed by referendum and effective 27 February 2012

amendments:

• proposed by the president of the republic or by one third of the People’s Assembly members;
• following review by a special Assembly committee, passage requires at least three-quarters majority vote by the Assembly and approval by the president

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

the father must be a citizen of Syria; if the father is unknown or stateless, the mother must be a citizen of Syria

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

10 years

chief of state:

President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Najah al-ATTAR (since 23 March 2006)

head of government:

Prime Minister Hussein ARNOUS (since 30 August 2020); Deputy Prime Minister Ali Abdullah AYOUB (Gen.) (since 30 August 2020)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the president

elections/appointments:

• president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held on 3 June 2014 (next to be held in June 2021);
• the president appoints the vice presidents, prime minister, and deputy prime ministers

election results:

Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD (Ba'th Party) 88.7%, Hassan al-NOURI (independent) 4.3%, Maher HAJJER (independent) 3.2%, other/invalid 3.8%

description:

unicameral People's Assembly or Majlis al-Shaab (250 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority preferential vote to serve 4-year terms)

elections:

last held on 19 July 2020 (next to be held in 2024)

election results:

• percent of vote by party - NPF 80%, other 20%;
• seats by party - NPF 200, other 50;
• composition - men 217, women 33, percent of women 13.2%

highest courts:

• Court of Cassation (organized into civil, criminal, religious, and military divisions, each with 3 judges);
• Supreme Constitutional Court (consists of 7 members)

judge selection and term of office:

• Court of Cassation judges appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), a judicial management body headed by the minister of justice with 7 members, including the national president;
• judge tenure NA;
• Supreme Constitutional Court judges nominated by the president and appointed by the SJC;
• judges serve 4-year renewable terms

subordinate courts:

• courts of first instance;
• magistrates' courts;
• religious and military courts;
• Economic Security Court;
• Counterterrorism Court (established June 2012)

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant)

chancery:

2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 232-6313

FAX:

[1] (202) 234-9548

note: Embassy ceased operations and closed on 18 March 2014

chief of mission:

• Ambassador (vacant);
• note - on 6 February 2012, the US closed its embassy in Damascus;
• Czechia serves as a protecting power for US interests in Syria

telephone:

[963] (11) 3391-4444

embassy:

Abou Roumaneh, 2 Al Mansour Street, Damascus

mailing address:

P. O. Box 29, Damascus

FAX:

[963] (11) 3391-3999

name:

"Humat ad-Diyar" (Guardians of the Homeland)

lyrics/music:

Khalil Mardam BEY/Mohammad Salim FLAYFEL and Ahmad Salim FLAYFEL

note: adopted 1936, restored 1961; between 1958 and 1961, while Syria was a member of the United Arab Republic with Egypt, the country had a different anthem

agriculture:

17%

industry:

16%

services:

67% (2008 est.)

lowest 10%:

NA

highest 10%:

NA

• state-run TV and radio broadcast networks;
• state operates 2 TV networks and 5 satellite channels;
• 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 (2018)

number of registered air carriers:

3 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 11

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

17,896 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

30,000 mt-km (2018)

total:

2,052 km (2014)

standard gauge:

1,801 km 1.435-m gauge (2014)

narrow gauge:

251 km 1.050-m gauge (2014)

total:

69,873 km (2010)

paved:

63,060 km (2010)

unpaved:

6,813 km (2010)

total:

25

by type:

bulk carrier 1, general cargo 10, other 14 (2019)

• N/A;
• the Syrian Armed Forces (SAF) are rebuilding and trying to integrate government-allied militias and auxiliary forces while continuing to engage in a civil war;
• prior to the start of the civil war in 2011, the SAF had approximately 300,000 active troops, including 200-225,000 Army;
• by 2018, its estimated size was reportedly less than 100,000 due to casualties and desertions (2019 est.)

• the SAF's inventory is comprised mostly of Russian and Soviet-era equipment;
• since 2010, Russia has supplied nearly all of Syria's imported weapons systems, although China and Iran have also provided military equipment (2019 est.)

• 18-42 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service;
• conscript service obligation is 18 months;
• women are not conscripted but may volunteer to serve (2019)

• the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has operated in the Golan between Israel and Syria since 1974 to monitor the ceasefire following the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and supervise the areas of separation between the two countries;
• as of October 2019, UNDOF consisted of about 1,140 personnel

• Abdallah Azzam Brigades;
• Ansar al-Islam;
• Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq;
• Hizballah;
• Hurras al-Din;
• Islamic Jihad Union;
• Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps -- Qods Force;
• Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham;
• Kata'ib Hizballah;
• Kurdistan Workers' Party;
• Mujahidin Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem;
• al-Nusrah Front (Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham);
• al-Qa'ida;
• Palestine Liberation Front;
• PFLP-General Command;
• Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (2020)

note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T

• Golan Heights is Israeli-controlled with an almost 1,000-strong UN Disengagement Observer Force 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 would settle border dispute with Jordan

refugees (country of origin):

13,311 (Iraq) (2019); 562,312 (Palestinian Refugees) (2020)

IDPs:

6.1 million (ongoing civil war since 2011) (2020)

stateless persons:

• 160,000 (2019);
• note - Syria's stateless population consists of Kurds and Palestinians;
• stateless persons are prevented from voting, owning land, holding certain jobs, receiving food subsidies or public healthcare, enrolling in public schools, or being legally married to Syrian citizens;
• in 1962, some 120,000 Syrian Kurds were stripped of their Syrian citizenship, rendering them and their descendants stateless;
• in 2011, the Syrian Government granted citizenship to thousands of Syrian Kurds as a means of appeasement;
• however, resolving the question of statelessness is not a priority given Syria's ongoing civil war

note: the ongoing civil war has resulted in more than 5.5 million registered Syrian refugees - dispersed in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey - as of November 2020

current situation:

• as conditions continue to deteriorate due to Syria’s civil war, human trafficking has increased;
• Syrians remaining in the country and those that are refugees abroad are vulnerable to trafficking;
• Syria is a source and destination country for men, women and children subjected to forced labor and sex trafficking;
• Syrian children continue to be forcibly recruited by government forces, pro-regime militias, armed opposition groups, and terrorist organizations to serve as soldiers, human shields, and executioners;
• ISIL forces Syrian women and girls and Yazidi women and girls taken from Iraq to marry its fighters, where they experience domestic servitude and sexual violence;
• Syrian refugee women and girls are forced into exploitive marriages or prostitution in neighboring countries, while displaced children are forced into street begging domestically and abroad

tier rating:

• Tier 3 - the government does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so;
• in 2014, Syria’s violent conditions enabled human trafficking to flourish;
• the government made no effort to investigate, prosecute, or convict trafficking offenders or complicit government officials, including those who forcibly recruited child soldiers;
• authorities did not identify victims and failed to ensure victims, including child soldiers, were protected from arrest, detention, and severe abuse as a result of being trafficked (2015)

• 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