Syria

HISTORY

Syria was the location of one of the earliest civilizations and was a centre of Neolithic culture around 10,000BC.

The Syrian region was originally divided between various small kingdoms which fought against Israel and were subdued by the ancient Mesopotamian kingdom of Assyria.

According to Biblical accounts, the Syrian region has been coveted since the time of the Pharaohs, with disputes stretching beyond the reign of King Solomon and into the era of the "Kings of Assyria."

The Assyrians occupied the region between 721 and 633 BC. The name Syria is derived from Assyria.

Syria was subsequently occupied by Babylonia, Persia and Macedonia, but gained importance under Seleucus Nicator, founder of Antioch in 300 BC, and Antiochus the Great.

One of the oldest cities in the world, Damascus was founded in the second millennium BC in a fertile spot between barren mountains and a sandy desert.

The King James Bible refers to Damascus 45 times in the Old Testament and 15 in the New.

St Paul received his vision of Christ on the road to Damascus, and his sight was restored there Ananias in a house on Straight Street.

The Damascus Straight Street c. 1900

After forming part of the Roman and Byzantine Empires, Rashidun forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid took control of Syria and Palestine in the Battle of Yarmouk on August 20, 636. This marked the first great wave of Muslim conquests after the death of Muhammad.

Damascus was chosen as the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate from 661 to 750.

During the Middle Ages, Syria was the scene of many of The Crusaders' exploits.

Syria was part of the Ottoman Empire between 1516 and 1918.

1803 Cedid Atlas, showing Ottoman Syria labelled as "Al Sham" in yellow

The country was occupied by French and British troops 1918 to 1919. In 1920, the short-lived independent Arab Kingdom of Syria, came into existence. The first modern Arab state, it was established under Faisal I of the Hashemite family.

Faisal I's rule over Syria ended after only a few months, following the Battle of Maysalun. After the San Remo conference, the League of Nations put Syria under a French mandate.

Syria became independent in 1946 and three years later came under military rule.

In 1958 Syria merged with Egypt, to become the United Arab Republic, but after an army coup in 1961 Syria seceded and the Independent Syrian Arab Republic was established.

The current flag was first adopted on February 22, 1958 to represent Syria as part of the United Arab Republic, and was used until 1961. It was re-adopted in 1980.

The flag is based on the Arab Liberation Flag, which had four colors - black, green, white and red - representing four major dynasties of Arab history: Abbasids, Faṭimids, Umayyads, and Hashimites.

The Ba'ath Party came to power in Syria in 1963 in a coup d'état by a clique of quasi-leftist Syrian Army officers calling themselves the National Council of the Revolutionary Command.

Syria was put under emergency law in 1963 effectively suspending most constitutional protections for citizens. It was lifted in 2011 when civil war broke out.

In 1970 the moderate wing of the Ba'ath party, led by lieutenant general Hafiz al-Assad, secured power in a bloodless coup and in the following year Assad was elected president.

Syrian president Hafez al-Assad on a official portrait.

Hafiz al-Assad died of a heart attack on June 10, 2000. He was succeeded as president by his second-oldest son Bashar al-Assad (born September 11, 1965). He was also made commander in chief of the armed forces, and leader of the Ba'ath Party.

SYRIAN CIVIL WAR

The Syrian Civil War began on March 15, 2011, with demonstrations demanding the resignation of President Bashar al-Assad. The protests continued and the following month the Syrian Army fired on demonstrators across the country. After months of military battles, the protests turned into an armed rebellion.

About 11 million Syrians have been displaced from their homes by the Civil War. Five million have fled to neighboring countries.

Because of the ongoing Syrian Civil War, the value of Syria's overall exports has been slashed. It dropped, from the figure of US$12 billion in 2010 to only US$4 billion in 2012. Syria's oil and tourism industries in particular have been devastated. As of 2015, the Syrian economy relies upon inherently unreliable revenue sources such as dwindling customs and income taxes which are heavily bolstered by lines of credit from Iran. 

Syria was ranked last on the Global Peace Index from 2016 to 2018; it was deemed the most violent country in the world due to the civil war.

Palmyra offensive in March 2016. By Tasnim News Agency

Although Damascus (population 1.7 million) is the capital of Syria, for many decades the largest city was Aleppo. With an official population of 4.6 million in 2010, Aleppo was the largest Syrian city before the Syrian Civil War; however many parts of the city suffered massive destruction between 2012 and 2016 now Aleppo is probably the second-largest city in Syria after Damascus.

FUN SYRIA FACTS

Arabic is the official language of Syria. Aramaic was the lingua franca of the region before the advent of Arabic, and is still spoken among Assyrians.

According to a 2010 research by Michael Izady, 68.4% of Syrians are Sunni Muslims, 11.3% are Alawites, 11.2% are Christians and 3.2% are Druze, and 3.2% are Shias. However, since the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, around 500,000 Christians have left the country.

Syria has competed at the Olympics since 1948 winning one gold, one silver and one bronze medal. The gold medal was won by Ghada Shouaa for the women's heptathlon in 1996.

The two most popular local beers in Syria are Al-Shark and Barada, both Government-owned.

Source Daily Express