Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a West Asian country situated in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. Bordering Turkey, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, and Lebanon, it features a Mediterranean coastline to the west. Damascus serves as its capital and largest city. Governed as a republic under a transitional government, Syria is divided into 14 governorates. The country has a population of approximately 25 million people spread across an area of 185,180 square kilometers.
In 1918, the discovery of oil in the region of Mosul led to another negotiation with France to cede this region to the British zone of influence, which was to become Iraq.
In 1920, a short-lived independent Kingdom of Syria was established under Faisal I. However, French troops occupied Syria later that year after the San Remo conference proposed that the League of Nations put Syria under a French mandate.
In 1920, the border of Syria was recognized internationally when Syria became a League of Nations mandate.
On 21 July 1925, Sultan al-Atrash won the Battle of al-Kafr against the French.
On 2-3 August 1925, Sultan al-Atrash won the Battle of al-Mazraa against the French.
In the spring of 1927, resistance against the French in Syria lasted.
In September 1936, Syria and France negotiated a treaty of independence, and Hashim al-Atassi was the first president to be elected under the first incarnation of the modern republic of Syria. However, the treaty never came into force because the French Legislature refused to ratify it.
In 1937, Sultan al-Atrash returned to Syria after the signing of the Syrian-French Treaty.
In 1939, while Syria was still a French mandate, the French allowed a plebiscite regarding the Sanjak of Alexandretta joining Turkey.
Natural gas was discovered at the field of Jbessa in 1940.
In July 1941, the British and Free French occupied Syria during the Syria-Lebanon campaign.
In 1945, the First Syrian Republic gained de jure independence as a parliamentary republic and became a founding member of the United Nations, legally ending the French Mandate.
In April 1946, French troops withdrew from Syria, granting the nation de facto independence.
In April 1946, continuing pressure from Syrian nationalists and the British forced the French to evacuate their troops, leaving the country in the hands of a republican government that had been formed during the mandate.
At independence in 1946, agriculture (including minor forestry and fishing) was the most important sector of the economy, and in the 1940s and early 1950s, agriculture was the fastest growing sector.
In May 1948, Syrian forces invaded Palestine, along with other Arab states, and immediately attacked Jewish settlements, aiming to prevent the establishment of the state of Israel.
In 1948, with the establishment of Israel, the remaining Jewish population in Syria dwindled due to the civil war, with only 100 Jews living in Syria today.
In March 1949, Colonel Husni al-Za'im led the first military overthrow of the Arab World since the start of the Second World War in Syria.
Between 1949 and 1971, the post-independence period in Syria was tumultuous, marked by multiple coup attempts.
In 1949, Syria recognized Turkish sovereignty over the Sanjak of Alexandretta for a short period.
Between 1953 and 1976, agriculture's contribution to GDP increased (in constant prices) by only 3.2%, approximately the rate of population growth.
In 1954, Shishakli was overthrown in a coup, and the parliamentary system in Syria was restored.
In November 1956, as a direct result of the Suez Crisis, Syria signed a pact with the Soviet Union, giving a foothold for communist influence within the government in exchange for military equipment.
In 1956, petroleum in commercial quantities was first discovered in the northeast of Syria.
On 1 February 1958, Syrian President Shukri al-Quwatli and Egypt's Nasser announced the merging of Egypt and Syria, creating the United Arab Republic.
In September 1958, Law 134 was passed in response to concern about peasant mobilization and expanding peasants' rights to strengthen the position of sharecroppers and agricultural laborers in relation to land owners. This law led to the creation of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, which announced the implementation of new laws that would allow the regulation of working condition especially for women and adolescents, set hours of work, and introduce the principle of minimum wage for paid laborers and an equitable division of harvest for sharecroppers.
Agrarian reform measures introduced from 1958 to 1961, allowed for more progress in redistribution of land than any other reforms in Syria's history, since independence.
In 1958, Syria entered a brief pan-Arab union with Egypt.
In 1960, television was introduced to Syria and Egypt when both were part of the United Arab Republic, broadcasting in black and white.
On 28 September 1961, Syria seceded from the union with Egypt, after a coup and terminated the political union.
Agrarian reform measures introduced from 1958 to 1961, allowed for more progress in redistribution of land than any other reforms in Syria's history, since independence.
In 1961, a coup d'état in Syria led to the termination of the pan-Arab union with Egypt.
The instability that followed the 1961 coup culminated in the 8 March 1963 Ba'athist coup.
On 8 March 1963, a Ba'athist coup engineered by members of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party led by Michel Aflaq and Salah al-Din al-Bitar, resulted in the new Syrian cabinet being dominated by Ba'ath members.
In 1963, a coup d'état carried out by the military committee of the Ba'ath Party established a one-party state in Syria, which ran the country under martial law until 2011.
In 1963, the Emergency Law was enacted, effectively suspending most constitutional protections. It was justified by the government in the light of the continuing war with Israel over the Golan Heights.
The 1963 Ba'athist coup marked a radical break in modern Syrian history, after which the Ba'ath party monopolised power in the country to establish a one-party state and shaped a socio-political order by enforcing its state ideology.
On 23 February 1966, the neo-Ba'athist Military Committee carried out an intra-party rebellion against the Ba'athist Old Guard (Aflaq and Bitar), imprisoned President Amin al-Hafiz and designated a regionalist, civilian Ba'ath government on 1 March.
In 1966, Internal power-struggles within Ba'athist factions caused further coups.
In 1967, Israel occupied the western two-thirds of Syria's Golan Heights region.
In 1967, when the Six-Day War broke out between Egypt and Israel, Syria joined the war and attacked Israel as well. In the final days of the war, Israel captured two-thirds of the Golan Heights in under 48 hours.
The coup of 1966 led to the schism within the original pan-Arab Ba'ath Party, and in 1968, one Iraqi-led ba'ath movement was established.
In November 1970, Hafez al-Assad, who at the time was Minister of Defense, deposed Salah Jadid, who was Syria's effective ruler from 1966.
In November 1970, the Syrian Corrective Movement, a bloodless military coup, installed Hafez al-Assad as the strongman of the Syrian government.
In 1970, a coup saw Hafez al-Assad come to power, establishing a hereditary dictatorship in Syria.
The 1970 retreat of Syrian forces sent to aid the Palestine Liberation Organization led by Yasser Arafat during the "Black September (also known as the Jordan Civil War of 1970)" hostilities with Jordan reflected disagreement between Jadid and Assad.
Between 1949 and 1971, the post-independence period in Syria was tumultuous, marked by multiple coup attempts.
On January 31, 1973, Hafez al-Assad implemented a new constitution that did not require the President of Syria to be a Muslim, leading to demonstrations organized by the Muslim Brotherhood.
On 6 October 1973, Syria and Egypt initiated the Yom Kippur War against Israel, leading to initial Syrian gains that were later reversed by the Israel Defense Forces, who pushed deeper into Syrian territory and largely destroyed the village of Quneitra.
In December 2024, Israel violated the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria by taking control of the U.N.-patrolled buffer zone on Syrian territory during its invasion of Syria.
Petroleum became Syria's leading natural resource and chief export after 1974.
Between 1953 and 1976, agriculture's contribution to GDP increased (in constant prices) by only 3.2%, approximately the rate of population growth. From 1976 to 1984 growth in agriculture declined to 2% a year, and its importance in the economy declined as other sectors grew more rapidly.
By 1985 agriculture (including a little forestry and fishing) contributed only 16.5% to GDP, down from 22.1% in 1976.
In 1976, television broadcasts in Syria transitioned from black and white to color.
In 1976, the Syrian government survived a series of armed revolts led mostly by Islamists of the Muslim Brotherhood.
In early 1976, Syria entered Lebanon, beginning their 29-year military presence.
In 1981, Israel effectively annexed the western two-thirds of Syria's Golan Heights region.
In 1981, Israel occupied the Shebaa farms, along with the rest of the Golan Heights.
In 1981, as in the 1970s, 53% of the population was still classified as rural, although movement to the cities continued to accelerate.
By 1982, the Syrian government had survived a series of armed revolts led mostly by Islamists of the Muslim Brotherhood, through a series of repressions and massacres.
In 1982, the Hama massacre occurred, where Syrian military troops and Ba'athist paramilitaries killed between 2,000 and 40,000 people (Islamists and civilians).
In contrast to the 1970s, by 1983 agriculture employed only 30% of the labor force.
From 1976 to 1984 growth in agriculture declined to 2% a year, and its importance in the economy declined as other sectors grew more rapidly.
By 1985 agriculture (including a little forestry and fishing) contributed only 16.5% to GDP, down from 22.1% in 1976.
In 1985, the Syrian government had taken measures to revitalize agriculture. The 1985 investment budget saw a sharp rise in allocations for agriculture, including land reclamation and irrigation.
In 1991, Syria participated in the United States-led Gulf War against Saddam Hussein and also participated in the multilateral Madrid Conference.
In June 2000, Bashar al-Assad was elected president of Syria after his father's death.
After Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon in 2000, Hezbollah claimed that the withdrawal was not complete because Shebaa was on Lebanese – not Syrian – territory.
From 2000 to 2008, the real per capita GDP growth in Syria was just 2.5% per year.
In 2000, Hafez al-Assad died and was succeeded by his son, Bashar al-Assad.
In 2000, negotiations between Syria and Israel failed after Assad's meeting with U.S. President Bill Clinton in Geneva, and no further direct talks have occurred since.
By autumn 2001, authorities had suppressed the Damascus Spring movement, imprisoning some of its leading intellectuals.
Since 2001, Syria's share in global exports has eroded gradually.
In October 2003, Israel bombed a site near Damascus, alleging it was a terrorist training facility for members of Islamic Jihad.
The coup of 1966 led to the schism within the original pan-Arab Ba'ath Party, and the Iraqi-led ba'ath movement ended in 2003.
In March 2004, Syrian Kurds and Arabs clashed in al-Qamishli, with signs of rioting seen in Qamishli and Hasakeh.
In 2004, the poverty rate in Syria was at 11%.
In 2005, Syria ended its military presence in Lebanon after the assassination of Rafic Hariri, which led to international condemnation and the Cedar Revolution.
In 2005, the Syrian military withdrew from Lebanon in response to domestic and international pressure after the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
In 2005, the UNDP announced that 30% of the Syrian population lived in poverty, and 11.4% lived below the subsistence level.
In 2005, the obligatory military service period was decreased from two and a half years to two years.
A big challenge for Syria before the civil war was its high population growth (in 2006 the growth rate was 2.7%), leading to rapidly increasing demand for urban and industrial water.
On 6 September 2007, foreign jet fighters, suspected to be Israeli, reportedly carried out Operation Orchard against a suspected nuclear reactor under construction by North Korean technicians.
In 2007, the poverty rates increased from 11% in 2004 to 12.3%. Main exports included crude oil, refined products, raw cotton, clothing, fruits, and grains. The bulk of imports are raw materials essential for industry, vehicles, agricultural equipment, and heavy machinery.
According to the World Refugee Survey 2008, published by the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, Syria hosted a population of refugees and asylum seekers numbering approximately 1,852,300. The vast majority of this population was from Iraq (1,300,000), but sizeable populations from Palestine (543,400) and Somalia (5,200) also lived in the country.
From 2000 to 2008, the real per capita GDP growth in Syria was just 2.5% per year.
In 2008, the obligatory military service period was decreased to 21 months.
Prior to the conflict, in 2009, Syria had a maternal mortality ratio of 52 deaths per 100,000 live births.
As of 2010, the value of overall exports was US$12 billion which then reduced to US$4 billion in 2012.
From 2010 to 2023, the World Bank estimated that the Syrian GDP had contracted by 84%.
In 2010, Human Rights Watch referred to Syria's human rights record as "among the worst in the world."
In 2010, Syria was classified by the World Bank as a lower middle income country, and remained dependent on the oil and agriculture sectors. The oil sector provided about 40% of export earnings.
On 26 January 2011, public demonstrations began across Syria as part of the wider Arab Spring, evolving into a nationwide uprising demanding the resignation of Assad and an end to Ba'ath Party rule.
Between March 2011 and March 2021, more than 306,000 civilians were killed in the Syrian civil war.
Since March 2011, about 9.5 million Syrians, half the population, had been displaced. By 2014, 4 million were outside the country as refugees.
On April 21, 2011, the Emergency Law, which had been in effect since 1963 and effectively suspended most constitutional protections, was lifted.
In November 2011, following the violent suppression of the Arab Spring protests, the Syrian government was suspended from the Arab League.
In November 2011, the United Nations reported that during the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, of the over 3,500 deaths, over 250 were children as young as two years old, and boys as young as 11 years old had been gang-raped by security services officers.
In December 2011, the Arab League sent an observer mission to Syria as part of its proposal for peaceful resolution of the crisis, after having suspended Syria's membership due to the government's response to the protests.
Because of internet censorship laws, 13,000 internet activists were arrested in 2011 and 2012.
In 1963, a coup d'état carried out by the military committee of the Ba'ath Party established a one-party state in Syria, which ran the country under martial law from 1963 until 2011.
In 2011, Bashar al-Assad abolished the Supreme State Security Court.
In 2011, the obligatory military service period was decreased to a year and a half.
Since the Arab Spring in 2011, Syria has been embroiled in a multi-sided civil war, leading to a refugee crisis.
Since the ongoing civil war of 2011, Syria has been increasingly isolated from the international community, with diplomatic relations severed by numerous countries.
The 2011 Freedom House report ranked Syria "Not Free" in its annual Freedom in the World survey.
In July 2012, people opposing President Assad's rule claimed that more than 200, mostly civilians, were massacred and about 300 injured in Hama in shelling by the government forces.
In August 2012, The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation suspended Syria citing "deep concern at the massacres and inhuman acts" perpetrated by forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad.
According to the 2012 Syrian constitution, the President was the head of state, while the Prime Minister was nominally the head of government, with real power residing in the presidency.
According to the 2012 constitution, the president was elected by Syrian citizens in a direct election.
As of 2012, the value of overall exports was slashed by two-thirds, from US$12 billion in 2010 to only US$4 billion in 2012. Also, the Syrian pound lost 80% of its value, with the economy becoming part state-owned and part war economy.
Because of internet censorship laws, 13,000 internet activists were arrested in 2011 and 2012.
In 2012, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, gained its de facto autonomy in the context of the Rojava conflict and the wider Syrian civil war.
Since 2012, oil and tourism industries in particular have been devastated, with $5 billion lost. U.S. and European Union bans on oil imports, which went into effect in 2012, are estimated to cost Syria about $400 million per month. Around 40% of all employees in the tourism sector lost their jobs since the beginning of the war.
In August 2013, the Syrian government was suspected of using chemical weapons against its civilians. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry stated that it was undeniable that chemical weapons had been used and that al-Assad's forces had committed a moral obscenity.
In 2013, representatives of the Syrian Interim government were invited to take up Syria's seat at the Arab League and was recognized as the "sole representative of the Syrian people" by several nations including the United States, United Kingdom, and France.
In 2013, the Syrian Interim Government was formed during the Syrian civil war.
In August 2014, UN Human Rights chief Navi Pillay criticized the international community for its paralysis in dealing with the Syrian civil war, which had resulted in 191,369 deaths by that time. Pillay stated that war crimes were being committed with total impunity on all sides of the conflict.
As of 2014, Damascus University had 210,000 students.
By 2014 about 9.5 million Syrians, half the population, had been displaced since March 2011; 4 million were outside the country as refugees.
In 2014, ISIS seized control of large parts of Eastern Syria, leading to a United States-led coalition launching an aerial bombing campaign against ISIS and providing support to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
In 2014, in response to rapid territorial gains made by the Islamic State during the civil war, several countries intervened on behalf of various factions opposing it.
In May 2015, ISIS captured Syria's phosphate mines, one of the Syrian government's last chief sources of income.
As of July 2015, the UNHCR estimated that there were 7.6 million internally displaced people due to the Syrian civil war.
In 2015, in response to rapid territorial gains made by the Islamic State during the civil war, several countries intervened on behalf of various factions opposing it.
On April 13, 2016, parliamentary elections were held in government-controlled areas of Syria for all 250 seats of the People's Council.
In August 2016, Turkey launched a multi-pronged invasion of northern Syria to combat the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (Rojava), ISIS, and government forces.
Since 2016, during the Syrian civil war, the Turkish Armed Forces and its ally the Syrian National Army have occupied areas of northern Syria.
In April 2017, the U.S. Navy carried out a missile attack against a Syrian air base which had allegedly been used to conduct a chemical weapons attack on Syrian civilians, according to the U.S. government.
As of July 2017, over 5 million refugees were registered by the UNHCR as a result of the Syrian civil war.
In 2017, the Islamic State faced territorial defeat in both central and eastern Syria due to interventions by various countries.
In 2017, the Syrian Salvation Government was formed during the Syrian civil war, controlling northern areas of the country.
In 2019, Syria had a Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 3.64/10, ranking it 144th globally out of 172 countries.
In 2019, Syria's population was estimated to be approximately 18,500,000, with Syrian Arabs and Palestinian refugees making up about 74% of the population.
In 2019, a U.S. airstrike killed civilians in Syria which the U.S. Central Command later called legitimate in November 2021, after a New York Times investigation said the military had concealed the death of dozens of non-combatants.
In 2019, the SDF announced an agreement with the Syrian Army allowing them to enter SDF-held cities to deter a Turkish attack.
As of 2020, according to the Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA), 94.17% of Syrians were Muslims (79.19% Sunni and 14.10% Shia, including Alawites) and 3.84% were Christians.
By 2020, the UN estimated that over 5.5 million Syrians were living as refugees in the region, and 6.1 million others were internally displaced.
Between March 2011 and March 2021, more than 306,000 civilians were killed in the Syrian civil war.
In November 2021, the U.S. Central Command called a 2019 airstrike that killed civilians in Syria legitimate, after a New York Times investigation said the military had concealed the death of dozens of non-combatants.
As of 2021, the export of illegal drugs eclipsed the country's legal exports, leading the New York Times to call Syria the world's newest narcostate. Captagon was Syria's primary export, valued at a minimum of US$3.4 billion annually.
In 2021, the average life expectancy in Syria was 73.1 years.
As of 2022, approximately 15.3 million people in Syria were in need of health support, representing 72% of the population, which is a 25% increase from the previous year.
Electoral Integrity Project's 2022 Global report designated Syrian elections as a "facade" with the worst electoral integrity in the world.
In 2022, the infant mortality rate in Syria was estimated at 12.1 deaths per 1,000 live births.
After 11 years, the Arab League readmitted Syria in 2023.
As of 2023, Syria's GDP was $6.2 billion. Syria's new government has vowed to stamp out the production of captagon.
As of 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated Syria's population at approximately 23.6 million.
In 2023, Freedom House's 50th edition of Freedom in the World designated Syria as "Worst of the Worst" among the "Not Free" countries, giving it a score of 1/100.
In 2023, the count of Christians affiliated with established denominations in Syria dropped from approximately 2.5 million before the civil war to about 500,000.
During its invasion of Syria in December 2024, Israel took control of the U.N.-patrolled buffer zone on Syrian territory, violating the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria.
In December 2024, rebel factions, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), took control of Aleppo, resulting in retaliatory airstrikes by Syrian regime forces and Russian aviation assets that targeted population centers and hospitals in rebel-held Idlib, causing at least 25 deaths; NATO issued a statement calling for civilian protection and a Syrian-led political solution.
On 12 December 2024, a spokesman of the transitional government announced that the constitution and parliament would be suspended and a 'judicial and human rights committee' would be established to review the constitution.
On 22 December 2024, Aisha al-Dibs was appointed as the Minister of Women's Affairs in the transitional government.
On 8 December 2024, a Syrian caretaker government was formed following the fall of the Assad regime. The transitional government replaced the caretaker government on 29 March 2025.
Prior to the fall of the Assad regime, Mohammed al-Bashir headed the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) formed in the province of Idlib by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist militant organization which led the overthrow of Assad in December 2024.
Prior to the fall of the Ba'athist regime on December 8, 2024, Syria was home to a burgeoning illegal drugs industry run by associates and relatives of Bashar al-Assad. It mainly produced captagon, an addictive amphetamine popular in the Arab world.
Syria is undergoing a political transition following the fall of the Assad regime on 8 December 2024, with a caretaker government led by Mohammed al-Bashir.
As of 2024 there are no international rail services, but high-speed rail in Turkey is being extended close to the border. The road network in Syria is 69,873 kilometres (43,417 miles) long, including 1,103 kilometres (685 miles) of expressways.
By 2024, the Syrian civil war had resulted in more than 600,000 deaths, with pro-Assad forces causing more than 90% of the total civilian casualties.
From the 1963 seizure of power by its Military Committee to the fall of the regime in 2024, the Ba'ath party ruled Syria as a dictatorship.
In 2024, the World Bank estimated that the Syrian GDP had contracted by 84% from 2010 to 2023.
In late 2024, a series of offensives from a coalition of opposition forces led to the capture of Damascus and the fall of Assad's regime.
On 29 January 2025, during the Syrian Revolution Victory Conference in Presidential Palace, the Syrian General Command appointed Ahmed al-Sharaa as president for the transitional period.
On 23 February 2025, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu demanded the complete demilitarization of southern Syria.
In March 2025, the UK-based SOHR reported that Syrian security forces and pro-government fighters had committed a massacre of more than 1500 Alawite civilians during clashes in western Syria.
On 10 March 2025, the SDF agreed to merge with the Syrian Armed Forces after SDF leader Mazloum Abdi met with al-Sharaa. Three days later al-Sharaa signed an interim constitution covering a five-year transitional period.
On 13 March 2025, al-Sharaa ratified an interim constitution, valid for five years, establishing a presidential system and the People's Assembly.
On 29 March 2025, the Syrian transitional government was announced by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at a ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Damascus, where new ministers were sworn in and outlined their agendas.
In early 2025, the Syrian war has left Syria's economy in a poor state, exacerbated by many still-remaining international sanctions.
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