Syria And Damascus

Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic (Arabic: الجمهورية العربية السورية‎ / al-Jumhūrīyah al-‘Arabīyah as-Sūrīyah  Arabic pronunciation (help·info)), is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south and Israel to the southwest(SONY PCG-5G2L battery). A country of fertile plains, high mountains and deserts, it is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups, including Kurds, Armenians, Assyrians, Christians, Druze, Alawite Shias and Arab Sunnis. The latter make up the majority of the Muslim population.

In English, the name Syria was formerly synonymous with the Levant, known in Arabic as al-Sham, while the modern state encompasses the sites of several ancient kingdoms and empires, including the Eblan civilization of the third millennium BC. In the Islamic era(SONY PCG-5G3L battery), its capital city, Damascus, the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world,[6] was the seat of the Umayyad Caliphate, and a provincial capital of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.

The modern Syrian state was established after the First World War as a French mandate, and represented the largest Arab state to emerge from the formerly Ottoman-ruled Arab Levant. It gained independence in April 1946(SONY PCG-F305 battery), as a parliamentary republic. The post-independence period was tumultuous, and a large number of military coups and coup attempts shook the country in the period 1949–1971. Between 1958 and 1961, Syria entered a brief union with Egypt, which was terminated by a military coup. Syria was under Emergency Law from 1963 to 2011, effectively suspending most constitutional protections for citizens, and its system of government is considered to be non-democratic. (SONY PCG-5J1L battery) Bashar al-Assad has been president since 2000 and was preceded by his father Hafez al-Assad, who was in office from 1971.[8]

Syria is a member of one International organization other than the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement; it is currently suspended from the Arab League,[9] the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation,[10] and self suspended from the Union for the Mediterranean.[11]

Since March 2011, Syria has been embroiled in civil war in the wake of uprisings (considered an extension of the Arab Spring, the mass movement of revolutions and protests in the Arab world) against Assad and the neo-Ba'athist government(SONY PCG-5J2L battery).

The name Syria is derived from the ancient Greek name for Syrians: Σύριοι, Sýrioi, or Σύροι, Sýroi, which the Greeks applied without distinction to the Assyrians.[12][13] A number of modern scholars argued that the Greek word related to the cognate Ἀσσυρία, Assyria, ultimately derived from the Akkadian Aššur.[14] Others believed that it was derived from Siryon, the name that the Sidonians gave to Mount Hermon.[15] However, the discovery of the Çineköy inscription in 2000 seems to support the theory that the term Syria derives from Assyria(SONY PCG-5K2L battery).

The area designated by the word has changed over time. Classically, Syria lies at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, between Egypt and Arabia to the south and Cilicia to the north, stretching inland to include parts of Iraq, and having an uncertain border to the northeast that Pliny the Elder describes as including, from west to east, Commagene, Sophene, and Adiabene. (SONY PCG-5L1L battery)

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, later renamed Palaestina in AD 135 (the region corresponding to modern day Israel, the Palestinian Territories, and Jordan) 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 Iraq. (SONY PCG-6S2L battery)

Female figurine, Syria, 5000 BC. Ancient Orient Museum.

Since approximately 10,000 BC Syria was one of centers of Neolithic culture (PPNA) where agriculture and cattle breeding appeared for the first time in the world. The following Neolithic period (PPNB) is represented by rectangular houses of Mureybet culture. At the time of the pre-pottery Neolithic people used vessels made of stone, gyps and burnt lime (Vaiselles blanches). Finds of obsidian tools from Anatolia are evidences of early trade relations(SONY PCG-6S3L battery). Cities of Hamoukar and Emar played an important role during the late Neolithic and Bronze Age. Archaeologists have demonstrated that civilization in Syria was one of the most ancient on earth.

Around the excavated city of Ebla near Idlib in northern Syria, a great Semitic empire spread from the Red Sea north to Anatolia and east to Iraq from 2500 to 2400 BC. Ebla appears to have been founded around 3000 BC, and gradually built its empire through trade with the cities of Sumer and Akkad, as well as with peoples to the northwest. (SONY PCG-6V1L battery) Gifts from Pharaohs, found during excavations, confirm Ebla's contact with Egypt. Scholars believe the language of Ebla to be among the oldest known written Semitic languages, designated as Paleo-Canaanite.[18]

However, more recent classifications of the Eblaite language has shown that it was an East Semitic language, closely related to the Akkadian language.[19] The Eblan civilization was likely conquered by Sargon of Akkad around 2260 BC; the city was restored, as the nation of the Amorites, a few centuries later, and flourished through the early second millennium BC until conquered by the Hittites. (SONY PCG-6W1L battery)

Antiquity and early Christian era

Main article: Syria (Roman province)

During the second millennium BC, Syria was occupied successively by Canaanites, Phoenicians, and Arameans as part of the general disruptions and exchanges associated with the Sea Peoples. The Phoenicians settled along the coast of Northern Canaan (Lebanon). Egyptians, Sumerians, Assyrians, Babylonians and Hittites variously occupied the strategic ground of Syria during this period; the land between their various empires being marsh. (SONY PCG-7111L battery)

Eventually, the Persians took Syria as part of their hegemony of Southwest Asia; this dominion was transferred to the Ancient Macedonians and Greeks after Alexander the Great's conquests and the Seleucid Empire. Pompey the Great captured Antioch in 64 BC, turning Syria into a Roman province. Thus control of this region passed to the Romans and then the Byzantines. (SONY PCG-71511M battery)

The population of Syria during the heyday of the empire was probably not exceeded again until the 19th century. Syria's large and prosperous population made Syria one of the most important of the Roman provinces, particularly during the 2nd and 3rd centuries (AD).[21]

The Roman Emperor Alexander Severus, who was emperor from 222 to 235, was Syrian. His cousin Elagabalus, who was emperor from 218 to 222, was also Syrian and his family held hereditary rights to the high priesthood of the sun god El-Gabal at Emesa (modern Homs) in Syria(SONY PCG-6W3L battery). Another Roman emperor who was a Syrian was Philip the Arab (Marcus Julius Philippus), emperor from 244 to 249.[21]

Syria is significant in the history of Christianity; Saulus of Tarsus, better known as the Apostle Paul, was converted on the Road to Damascus and emerged as a significant figure in the Christian Church at Antioch in ancient Syria, from which he left on many of his missionary journeys. (Acts 9:1–43 ) (SONY PCG-7113L battery)

Islamic era

Main articles: Umayyad Caliphate, Abbasid Caliphate, Ayyubid dynasty, Zengid dynasty, and Fresco from Qasr al-Hayr al-Gharbî, built in the early 7th century

By AD 640, Syria was conquered by the Rashidun army led by Khalid ibn al-Walid. In the mid-7th century, the Umayyad dynasty, then rulers of the empire, placed the capital of the empire in Damascus. The country's power dramatically declined during later Ummayad rule; mainly due to the totalitarianism, corruption and the resulting revolutions by the oppressed(SONY PCG-7133L battery). The Ummayad dynasty was then overthrown by the Abbasid dynasty in 750, who moved the capital of empire to Baghdad.

Arabic — made official under Ummayad rule — became the dominant language, replacing Greek and Aramaic in the Abbasid era. In 887, the Egypt-based Tulunids annexed Syria from the Abbasids, and were later replaced by once the Egypt-based Ikhshidids and later by the Hamdanids originating in Aleppo founded by Sayf al-Dawla. (SONY PCG-7Z1L battery)

The 1299 Battle of Wadi al-Khazandar. The Mongols under Ghazan defeated the Mamluks.

Sections of the coastline of Syria were briefly held by Frankish overlords during the Crusades of the 12th century, and were known as the Crusader state of the Principality of Antioch. The area was also threatened by Shi'a extremists known as Assassins (Hassassin). Aleppo fell to the Mongols of Hulegu in January 1260, and Damascus in March, but then Hulegu needed to break off his attack to return to China to deal with a succession dispute(SONY PCG-7Z2L battery).

A few months later, the Mamluks arrived with an army from Egypt, and defeated the Mongols in the Battle of Ain Jalut, in Galilee. The Mamluk leader, Baibars, made Damascus a provincial capital. When he died, power was taken by Qalawun. In the meantime, an emir named Sunqur al-Ashqar had tried to declare himself ruler of Damascus, but he was defeated by Qalawun on 21 June 1280, and fled to northern Syria. Al-Ashqar, who had married a Mongol woman(SONY PCG-8Y1L battery), appealed for help from the Mongols. The Mongols of the Ilkhanate took the city, but Qalawun persuaded Al-Ashqar to join him, and they fought against the Mongols on 29 October 1281, in the Second Battle of Homs, which was won by the Mamluks.[23]

In 1400, Timur Lenk, invaded Syria, sacked Aleppo and captured Damascus after defeating the Mamluk army. The city's inhabitants were massacred, except for the artisans, who were deported to Samarkand. (SONY PCG-8Y2L battery)By the end of the 15th century, the discovery of a sea route from Europe to the Far East ended the need for an overland trade route through Syria.

In 1516, the Ottoman Empire invaded the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt, conquering Syria, and incorporating it into its empire. The Ottoman system was not burdensome to Syrians because the Turks respected Arabic as the language of the Koran, and accepted the mantle of defenders of the faith. Damascus was made the major entrepot for Mecca, and as such it acquired a holy character to Muslims, because of the baraka (spiritual force or blessing) of the countless pilgrims who passed through on the hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca. (SONY PCG-8Z2L battery)]

Ottoman administration followed a unique system that lead to a peaceful coexistence for centuries. Each religious minority — Shia Muslim, Greek Orthodox, Maronite, Armenian, and Jewish—constituted a millet. The religious heads of each community administered all personal status law and performed certain civil functions as well. (SONY PCG-8Z1L battery)

In the midst of World War I two Allied diplomats (Frenchman François Georges-Picot and Briton Mark Sykes) secretly agreed on the post war division of the Ottoman Empire into respective zones of influence in the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916. Initially, the two territories were separated by a border that ran in an almost straight line from Jordan to Iran. However, the discovery of oil in the region of Mosul just before the end of the war led to yet another negotiation with France in 1918 to cede this region to 'Zone B'(SONY PCG-7112L battery), or the British zone of influence.[citation needed] This border was later recognized internationally when Syria became a League of Nations mandate in 1920[27] and has not changed to this date.

The inauguration of President Hashim al-Atassi in 1936

In 1920, a short-lived independent Kingdom of Syria was established under Faisal I of the Hashemite family. However, his rule over Syria ended after only a few months, following the Battle of Maysalun. French troops occupied Syria later that year after the San Remo conference proposed that the League of Nations put Syria under a French mandate. (SONY PCG-6W2L battery)

In 1925, Sultan al-Atrash led a revolt that broke out in the Druze Mountain and spread to engulf the whole of Syria and parts of Lebanon. Al-Atrash won several battles against the French, notably the Battle of al-Kafr on 21 July 1925, the Battle of al-Mazraa on 2–3 August 1925, and the battles of Salkhad, al-Musayfirah and Suwayda. France sent thousands of troops from Morocco and Senegal, leading the French to regain many cities(SONY PCG-5K1L battery), although resistance lasted until the spring of 1927. The French sentenced Sultan al-Atrash to death, but he had escaped with the rebels to Transjordan and was eventually pardoned. He returned to Syria in 1937 after the signing of the Syrian-French Treaty.

Syria and France negotiated a treaty of independence in September 1936, 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(SONY VGP-BPL8 battery). With the fall of France in 1940 during World War II, Syria came under the control of Vichy France until the British and Free French occupied the country in the Syria-Lebanon campaign in July 1941. Continuing pressure from Syrian nationalists and the British 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. (SONY VGP-BPS9 battery)

Independence and instability

Main articles: Syrian Republic (1930–1958), United Arab Republic, and 1963 Syrian coup d'état

Syrian politics from independence through the late 1960s were marked by upheaval. In 1948, Syria was involved in the Arab-Israeli War, aligning with the other local Arab states who were attempting to prevent the establishment of the State of Israel.[30] This defeat was one of several trigger factors for the March 1949 Syrian coup d'état by Col. Husni al-Za'im, described as the first military overthrow of the Arab World(SONY VGP-BPS9/S battery) since the start of the Second World War. This was soon followed by another overthrow, by Col. Sami al-Hinnawi, who was himself quickly deposed by Col. Adib Shishakli, all within the same year.[30]

Shishakli eventually abolished multipartyism altogether, but was himself overthrown in a 1954 coup and the parliamentary system was restored,[30] but by this time power was increasingly concentrated in the military and security establishment. (SONY VGP-BPS9A battery) The weakness of parliamentary institutions and the mismanagement of the economy, as well as the influence of Nasserism and other ideologies, created fertile ground for various Arab nationalist, Syrian nationalist, and socialist movements, who represented disaffected elements of society, notably including religious minorities, and demanded radical reform. (SONY VGP-BPS9A/B battery)

In November 1956, as a direct result of the Suez Crisis,[31] Syria signed a pact with the Soviet Union, providing a foothold for Communist influence within the government in exchange for military equipment.[30] This increase in the strength of Syrian military technology worried Turkey, as it seemed feasible that Syria might attempt to retake İskenderun. Only heated debates in the United Nations lessened the threat of war. (SONY VGP-BPS9/B battery)

On 1 February 1958, Syrian President Shukri al-Quwatli and Nasser announced the merging of Egypt and Syria, creating the United Arab Republic, and all Syrian political parties, as well as the communists therein, ceased overt activities.[29] Meanwhile, a group of Syrian Ba'athist officers, alarmed by the party’s poor position and the increasing fragility of the union, decided to form a secret Military Committee(SONY VGP-BPS9A/S battery): its initial members were Lieutenant-Colonel Muhammad Umran, Major Salah Jadid and Captain Hafez al-Assad. On 28 September 1961, Syria seceded, and the ensuing instability culminated in the 8 March 1963 coup. The takeover was engineered by members of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, led by Michel Aflaq and Salah al-Din al-Bitar. The new cabinet was dominated by Ba'ath members(SONY VGP-BPL9 battery).

Neo-Ba'athist rule

1966-1970

On 23 February 1966, the Military Committee carried out an intra-party overthrow, imprisoned President Amin Hafiz and designated a regionalist, civilian Ba'ath government on 1 March.[30] Although Nureddin al-Atassi became the formal head of state, Salah Jadid was Syria's effective ruler from 1966 until 1970.[33] The coup led to a split within the original, pan-Arab Ba'ath Party; one Iraqi-led ba'ath movement (ruled Iraq from 1968 to 2003) and one Syrian-led ba'ath movement was established(SONY VGP-BPS10 battery).

Conflict over the cultivation of disputed lands sparked into 7 April prewar aerial clashes between Israel and Syria.[34] After Israel launched a preemptive strike on Egypt to begin the June 1967 war, Syria joined the battle against Israel as well. In the final days of the war, Israel turned its attention to Syria, capturing the entire Golan Heights in under 48 hours.[35] The defeat caused a split between Jadid and Assad over what steps to take next. (SONY VGP-BPL10 battery)

Quneitra village, largely destroyed before the Israeli withdrawal in June 1974.

Disagreement developed between Jadid, who controlled the party apparatus, and Assad, who controlled the military. The 1970 retreat of Syrian forces sent to aid the PLO during the "Black September" hostilities with Jordan reflected this disagreement.[37] The power struggle culminated in the November 1970 Corrective Movement, a bloodless military overthrow that installed Hafez al-Assad as the strongman of the government. (SONY VGP-BPS11 battery)

On 6 October 1973, Syria and Egypt initiated the Yom Kippur War against Israel. The Israel Defense Forces reversed the initial Syrian gains and pushed deeper into Syrian territory.[39]

In early 1976, Syria entered Lebanon, beginning the thirty-year Syrian military occupation. Over the following 15 years of civil war, Syria fought for control over Lebanon, and attempted to stop Israel from taking over in southern Lebanon, through extensive use of proxy militias. Syria then remained in Lebanon until 2005(SONY VGP-BPL11 battery).

In the late 1970s, an Islamic uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood was aimed against the government. Islamists attacked civilians and off-duty military personnel, and civilians were also killed in retaliatory strike by security forces. The uprising had reached its climax in the 1982 Hama massacre,[40] when some 10,000 - 40,000 people were killed by regular Syrian Army troops(SONY VGP-BPL12 battery).

Portraits of President Bashar al-Assad, and his father, former President Hafez al-Assad.

In a major shift in relations with both other Arab states and the Western world, Syria participated in the US-led Gulf War against Saddam Hussein. Syria participated in the multilateral Madrid Conference of 1991, and during the 1990s engaged in negotiations with Israel. These negotiations failed, and there have been no further direct Syrian-Israeli talks since President Hafez al-Assad's meeting with then President Bill Clinton in Geneva in March 2000. (SONY VGP-BPS12 battery)

Hafez al-Assad died on 10 June 2000. His son, Bashar al-Assad, was elected President in an election in which he ran unopposed.[29] His election saw the birth of the Damascus Spring and hopes of reform, but by autumn 2001 the authorities had suppressed the movement, imprisoning some of its leading intellectuals.[42] Instead, reforms have been limited to some market reforms(SONY VGP-BPS13 battery).

On 5 October 2003, Israel bombed a site near Damascus, charging it was a terrorist training facility for members of Islamic Jihad.[45] In March 2004, Syrian Kurds and Arabs clashed in the northeastern city of al-Qamishli. Signs of rioting were seen in the towns of Qameshli and Hassakeh.[46] In 2005, Syria ended its occupation of Lebanon.[47] On 6 September 2007, Israeli jet fighters carried out Operation Orchard against a suspected nuclear reactor under construction by North Korean technicians. (SONY VGP-BPS13Q battery)

The ongoing Syrian civil war was inspired by the Arab Spring Revolutions. It began in 2011 as a chain of peaceful protests, followed by a crackdown by the Syrian Army.[49] In July 2011, army defectors declared the formation of the Free Syrian Army and began forming fighting units. The opposition is dominated by Sunni Muslims, whereas the leading government figures are Alawites.[50] According to various sources, including the United Nations, up to 60,000 people have been killed, primarily civilians and armed combatants. (SONY VGP-BPS13A/Q battery) To escape the violence, over 650,000 Syrian refugees have fled to neighboring countries of Jordan,[54] Iraq,[55] Lebanon, and Turkey.

Syria lies between latitudes 32° and 38° N, and longitudes 35° and 43° E. It consists mostly of arid plateau, although the northwest part of the country bordering the Mediterranean is fairly green. The Northeast of the country "Al Jazira" and the South "Hawran" are important agricultural areas.[58] The Euphrates, Syria's most important river, crosses the country in the east(SONY VGP-BPS13B/Q battery). It is considered to be one of the fifteen states that comprise the so-called "Cradle of civilization".[59]

The climate in Syria is dry and hot, and winters are mild. Because of the country's elevation, snowfall does occasionally occur during winter.[58] Petroleum in commercial quantities was first discovered in the northeast in 1956. The most important oil fields are those of Suwaydiyah, Qaratshui, Rumayian, and Tayyem, near Dayr az–Zawr. (SONY VGP-BPS13/B battery) The fields are a natural extension of the Iraqi fields of Mosul and Kirkuk. Petroleum became Syria's leading natural resource and chief export after 1974. Natural gas was discovered at the field of Jbessa in 1940.[29]

Syria is formally a unitary republic. The constitution adopted in 2012 effectively transformed Syria into a semi-presidential republic due to the constitutional right for individuals to be elected which do not form part of the National Progressive Front. (SONY VGP-BPS13B/B battery) The President is Head of State and the Prime Minister is Head of Government.[61] The Peoples Council is the Syria's legislature responsible for passing laws, approving government appropriations and debating policy.[62] While presidency is an independent office, the Government of Syria is subject to the confidence of the Peoples Council in order to govern. In the event of a vote of no confidence by a simple majority, the Prime Minister is required to tender the resignation of their government to the President. (SONY VGP-BPS13A/S battery)

The executive branch consists of the president, two vice presidents, the prime minister, and the Council of Ministers (cabinet). The constitution requires the president to be a Muslim[64] but does not make Islam the state religion.

The constitution gives the president the right to appoint ministers, to declare war and state of emergency, to issue laws (which, except in the case of emergency, require ratification by the People's Council), to declare amnesty, to amend the constitution(SONY VGP-BPS21A/B battery), and to appoint civil servants and military personnel.[65] According to the 2012 constitution, the president is elected by Syrian citizens in a direct election.

Syria's legislative branch is the unicameral People's Council. Under the previous constitution, Syria did not hold multi-party elections for the legislature,[65] with two thirds of the seats automatically allocated to the ruling coalition. (SONY VGP-BPS21B battery) On 7 May 2012, Syria held its first elections in which parties outside the ruling coalition could take part. Seven new political parties took part in the elections, of which Popular Front for Change and Liberation was the largest opposition party. The armed anti-government rebels, however, chose not to field candidates and called on their supporters to boycott the elections. Article 8 of the old Syrian constitution stated that "the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party leads the state and society(SONY VGP-BPS21 battery)." The 2012 constitution does not contain this provision any longer. The President is the Secretary-General of the party, and the leader of the National Progressive Front governing coalition. The minor parties in the coalition are the Arab Socialist Movement, Arab Socialist Union, Communist Party of Syria (Unified), Communist Party of Syria (Bakdash), Social Democratic Unionists, Socialist Unionists, Syrian Social Nationalist Party, Democratic Socialist Unionist Party, Arabic Democratic Unionist Party, National Vow Movement. Outside of the coalition are 14 illegal Kurdish political parties. (SONY VGP-BPS21/S battery)

Syria's judicial branches include the Supreme Constitutional Court, the High Judicial Council, the Court of Cassation, and the State Security Courts. Islamic jurisprudence is a main source of legislation and Syria's judicial system has elements of Ottoman, French, and Islamic laws. Syria has three levels of courts: courts of first instance, courts of appeals, and the constitutional court, the highest tribunal. Religious courts handle questions of personal and family law. (SONY VGP-BPS13S battery) The Supreme State Security Court (SSSC) was abolished by President Bashar al-Assad by legislative decree No. 53 on 21 April 2011.[68]

Main article: Human rights in Syria

Syria's human rights situation is currently among the worst in the world, according to human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch.[69] Freedom House ranked Syria "Not Free" in its annual Freedom in the World survey. (SONY VGP-BPS13B/S battery)

The authorities are accused of arresting democracy and human rights activists, censoring websites, detaining bloggers, and imposing travel bans. Arbitrary detention, torture, and disappearances are widespread.[71] Although Syria's constitution guarantees gender equality, critics say that personal statutes laws and the penal code discriminate against women and girls. Moreover, it also grants leniency for so-called 'Honour killing'. (SONY VGP-BPS13B/G battery) As of 9 November 2011 during the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, the United Nations reported that of the over 3500 total deaths, over 250 deaths were children as young as 2 years old, and that boys as young as 11 years old have been gang raped by security services officers.[72][73] People opposing President Assad's rule claim that more than 200, mostly civilians, were massacred and about 300 injured in Hama in shelling by the Government forces on 12 July 2012. (SONY VGP-BPS14 battery)

The Emergency Law, effectively suspending most constitutional protections, was in effect from 1963 until 21 April 2011.[68] It was justified by the government in the light of the continuing war with Israel over the Golan Heights.

Syrian soldier wearing a Soviet-made Model ShMS nuclear-biological-chemical warfare mask aiming a Chinese Type-56 assault rifle

Main article: Military of Syria(SONY VGP-BPL14 battery)

The President of Syria is commander in chief of the Syrian armed forces, comprising some 400,000 troops upon mobilization. The military is a conscripted force; males serve in the military upon reaching the age of 18.[75] The obligatory military service period is being decreased over time, in 2005 from two and a half years to two years, in 2008 to 21 months and in 2011 to year and a half.[76] About 20,000 Syrian soldiers were deployed in Lebanon until 27 April 2005, when the last of Syria's troops left the country after three decades. (SONY VGP-BPS14/B battery)

The breakup of the Soviet Union — long the principal source of training, material, and credit for the Syrian forces — may have slowed Syria's ability to acquire modern military equipment. It has an arsenal of surface-to-surface missiles. In the early 1990s, Scud-C missiles with a 500-kilometer range were procured from North Korea, and Scud-D, with a range of up to 700 kilometers, is allegedly being developed by Syria with the help of North Korea and Iran, according to Zisser. (SONY VGP-BPS14/S battery)

Syria received significant financial aid from Persian Gulf Arab states as a result of its participation in the Persian Gulf War, with a sizable portion of these funds earmarked for military spending.

Ensuring national security, increasing influence among its Arab neighbors, and securing the return of the Golan Heights, are the primary goals of President Bashar al-Assad's foreign policy(SONY VGP-BPS14B battery). At many points in its history, Syria has seen virulent tension with its geographically cultural neighbors, such as Turkey, Israel, Iraq, and Lebanon. Syria enjoyed an improvement in relations with several of the states in its region in the 21st century, prior to the Arab Spring and the Syrian civil war.

Since the ongoing civil war of 2011, and associated killings and human rights abuses, Syria has been increasingly isolated from the countries in the region, and the wider international community. Diplomatic relations have been severed with several countries including: Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, United States, Belgium, Spain, and the Gulf States. (SONY VGP-BPS22 battery)

From the Arab league, Syria continues to maintain diplomatic relations with Yemen, Lebanon, Sudan, and Iraq. Syria's violence against civilians has also seen it suspended from the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in 2012. Syria continues to foster good relations with her traditional allies, Iran, China, and Russia, who are among the few countries which have supported the Syrian government in its conflict with the Syrian opposition(SONY VGP-BPS22 battery).

Syria considers the Hatay Province of Turkey as part of its own territory.[79]

Israel unilaterally annexed the Golan Heights in 1981, although the Syrian government continues to demand the return of this territory.

The Syrian occupation of Lebanon began in 1976 as a result of the civil war and ended in April 2006 in response to domestic and international pressure after the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri(SONY VGP-BPS18 battery).

Syria is classified by the World Bank as a "lower middle income country."[80] The economy is highly regulated by the government, which has increased subsidies and tightened trade controls to assuage protesters and protect foreign currency reserves.[81] Long-run economic constraints include foreign trade barriers, declining oil production, high unemployment, rising budget deficits, and increasing pressure on water supplies caused by heavy use in agriculture(SONY VGP-BPS22/A battery), rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and water pollution.[81] The UNDP announced in 2005 that 30% of the Syrian population lives in poverty and 11.4% live below the subsistence level.[29]

Syria's main exports include crude oil, refined products, raw cotton, clothing, fruits, and grains. The bulk of Syrian imports are raw materials essential for industry, vehicles, agricultural equipment, and heavy machinery. Earnings from oil exports as well as remittances from Syrian workers are the government's most important sources of foreign exchange. (SONY VGP-BPS22A battery)

Political instability poses a significant threat to future economic development. Foreign investment is constrained by violence, government restrictions, economic sanctions, and international isolation. Syria’s economy also remains hobbled by state bureaucracy, falling oil production, rising budget deficits, and inflation. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ11S battery)

Prior to the civil war in 2011, the government hoped to attract new investment in the tourism, natural gas, and service sectors to diversify its economy and reduce its dependence on oil and agriculture. The government began to institute economic reforms aimed at liberalizing most markets, but those reforms were slow and ad hoc, and have been completely reversed since the outbreak of conflict in 2011.[83] As of 2012, due to the ongoing Syrian civil war(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15T battery), the value of Syria's overall exports has been slashed by two thirds, from the figure of $12 billion USD in 2010 to only $4 billion USD in 2012.[84]

Syria's GDP declined by over 3% in 2011,[85] and is expected to further decline by 20% in 2012.[86]

As of 2012, Syria's oil and tourism industries in particular have been devastated, with $5 billion USD lost to the ongoing conflict of the civil war.[84] Reconstruction needed due to the ongoing civil war will cost as much as $10 billion USD.[84] Sanctions have sapped the government's finance. US and European Union bans on oil imports, which went into effect in 2012, are estimated to cost Syria about $400 million a month. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15G battery)

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 Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria. Syria's rate of oil production has decreased dramatically from a peak close to 600,000 barrels per day (95,000 m3/d) (bpd) in 1995 down to less than 140,000 bbl/d (22,000 m3/d) in 2012.[88] Syria exported roughly 200,000 bbl/d (32,000 m3/d) in 2005, and oil still accounts for a majority of the country's export income(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ11L battery). Syria also produces 22 million cubic meters of gas per day, with estimated reserves around 8.5 trillion cubic feet (240 km3). While the government has begun to work with international energy companies in the hopes of eventually becoming a gas exporter, all gas currently produced is consumed domestically.[29]

Main article: Transport in Syria

Syria has three international airports (Damascus, Aleppo and Lattakia), which serve as hubs for Syrian Air and are also served by a variety of foreign carriers(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ11Z battery).

The majority of Syrian cargo is carried by Chemins de Fer Syriens (the Syrian railway company), which links up with Turkish State Railways (the Turkish counterpart). For a relatively under developed country Syria's railway infrastructure is well maintained with many express services and modern trains. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ11M battery)

Most people live in the Euphrates River valley and along the coastal plain, a fertile strip between the coastal mountains and the desert. Overall population density in Syria is about 99 per km² (258 per square mile). 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 number approximately 1,852,300(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ18M battery). The vast majority of this population was from Iraq (1,300,000), but sizeable populations from the former British Mandate of Palestine (543,400) and Somalia (5,200) also lived in the country.[92]

Syrians are an overall indigenous Levantine people, closely related to their immediate neighbours, like Lebanese people, Palestinians, and Jordanians.[93][94] Syrian Arabs, together with some 400,000 UNRWA Palestinian Arabs make up over 90% of the population.[81] In addition, approximately 1,300,000 Iraqi refugees were estimated to live in Syria in 2007.[92] As of 1987, approximately 100,000 Circassians lived in Syria. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ18 battery)

Syria also hosts non-Arab ethnic minorities. The largest of these groups, Kurds, constitutes about 9% of the population, or approximately 2 million people.[96] Most Kurds reside in the northeastern corner of Syria and most speak the Kurmanji variant of the Kurdish language. The majority of Syrian Turkmen live in Aleppo, Damascus and Latakia and number around 500,000-1,000,000. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ210CE battery)

The Assyrians/Syriacs number around 877,000 and mainly live in the north and northeast (Homs, Aleppo, Qamishli, Hasakah), many of whom still retains several Neo-Aramaic dialects as spoken languages.[98] Their numbers have been boosted by many Iraqi refugees since the Iraq War.[99] Armenians number approximately 190,000. Syria holds the 7th largest Armenian population in the world(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ31S battery).

The largest concentration of Syrian diaspora outside the Arab world is in Brazil, which has millions of people of Arab ancestry.[100] The majority of Arab Argentines are from either Lebanese or Syrian background.

Sunni account for 74% of the population,[102] while 13% are Shia (Alawite, Twelvers, and Ismailis combined),[102] 10% Christian[102] (the majority Antiochian Orthodox, the rest include Greek Catholic, Assyrian Church of the East, Armenian Orthodox, Protestants and other denominations), and 3% Druze.[102] Druze number around 500,000, and concentrate mainly in the southern area of Jabal al-Druze. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ31Z battery)

President Bashar al-Assad's family is Alawite and Alawites dominate the government of Syria and hold key military positions.[104]

Christians (2.5 million), a sizable number of which are found among Syria's population of Palestinian refugees, are divided into several groups. Chalcedonian Antiochian Orthodox make up 35,7% of the Christian population; the Catholics (Melkite, Armenian Catholic, Syriac Catholic, Maronite, Chaldean Catholic and Latin) make up 26,2%(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ31E battery); the Armenian Apostolic Church 10,9%, the Syrian Orthodox make up 22,4%; Assyrian Church of the East and several smaller Christian denominations account the remainder. Many Christian monasteries also exist. Many Christian Syrians belong to a high socio-economic class.[105]

Languages

Arabic is the official language. Several modern Arabic dialects are used in everyday life, most notably Levantine in the west, Mesopotamian in the northeast. Kurdish (in its Kurmanji form) is widely spoken in the Kurdish regions of Syria(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ31J battery). Armenian and Turkish (South Azeri dialect) are spoken among the Armenian and Turkmen minorities.

Before the advent of Arabic, Aramaic was the lingua franca of the region and is still spoken among Assyrians and Classical Syriac is still used as the liturgical language of various Syriac denominations. Most remarkably, Western Neo-Aramaic is still spoken in the village of Ma`loula as well as two neighbouring villages, 35 miles (56 km) northeast of Damascus. Many educated Syrians also speak English and French(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ31M battery).

Syria is a traditional society with a long cultural history.[106] Importance is placed on family, religion, education and self-discipline and respect. The Syrian's taste for the traditional arts is expressed in dances such as the al-Samah, the Dabkeh in all their variations and the sword dance. Marriage ceremonies and the birth of children are occasions for the lively demonstration of folk customs. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ31B battery)

The Literature of Syria has contributed to Arabic literature and have a proud tradition of oral and written poetry. Syrian writers, many of whom immigrated to Egypt, played a crucial role in the nahda or Arab literary and cultural revival of the 19th century. Prominent contemporary Syrian writers include, among others, Adonis, Muhammad Maghout, Haidar Haidar, Ghada al-Samman, Nizar Qabbani and Zakariyya Tamer(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ410 battery).

Ba'ath Party rule, since the 1966 coup, has brought about renewed censorship. In this context, the genre of the historical novel, spearheaded by Nabil Sulayman, Fawwaz Haddad, Khyri al-Dhahabi and Nihad Siris, is sometimes used as a means of expressing dissent, critiquing the present through a depiction of the past. Syrian folk narrative, as a subgenre of historical fiction, is imbued with magical realism, and is also used as a means of veiled criticism of the present(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21 battery). Salim Barakat, a Syrian émigré living in Sweden, is one of the leading figures of the genre. Contemporary Syrian literature also encompasses science fiction and futuristic utopiae (Nuhad Sharif, Talib Umran), which may also serve as media of dissent.

The Music of Syria and its capital, Damascus, has long been one of the Arab world's most important, especially in the field of classical Arab music. Syria has also produced several pan-Arab stars, including Asmahan, Farid al-Atrash and singer Lena Chamamyan. The city of Aleppo is known for its muwashshah, a form of Andalous sung poetry popularized by Sabri Moudallal, as well as popular stars like Sabah Fakhri(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21S battery).

Television in Syria was formed in 1960, when Syria and Egypt (which adopted television that same year) were part of the United Arab Republic. It broadcasted in black and white until 1976. Syrian soap operas have considerable market penetration throughout the eastern Arab world.[108]

Nearly all of Syria’s media outlets are state owned, and the Ba'ath Party controls nearly all newspapers.[109] The authorities operate several intelligence agencies[110] among them Shu'bat al-Mukhabarat al-'Askariyya, employing a large number of operatives. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21M battery)

Sports

The most popular sports in Syria are football, basketball, swimming, and tennis. Damascus was home to the fifth and seventh Pan Arab Games. Many popular football teams are based in Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Latakia, etc.

The Abbasiyyin Stadium in Damascus is home to the Syrian national football team. The team enjoyed some success, having qualified for four Asian Cup competitions. The team's first international was on 20 November 1949, losing to Turkey 7–0. The team was ranked 115th in the world by FIFA as of November 2011(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ38M battery).

The Syrian cuisine is rich and varied in its ingredients and is linked to the region of Syria where a specific dish has originated. Syrian food mostly consists of Southern Mediterranean, Greek, and Southwest Asian dishes. Some Syrian dishes also evolved from Turkish and French cooking. Dishes like shish kebab, stuffed zucchini, yabra' (stuffed grape leaves, the word yapra' derıves from the Turkish word 'yaprak' meaning leaf) (Sony VGN-NR11S/S Battery).

The main dishes that form Syrian cuisine are kibbeh, hummus, tabbouleh, fattoush, labneh, shawarma, mujaddara, shanklish, pastırma, sujuk and baklava. Baklava is made of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and soaked in honey. Syrians often serve selections of appetizers, known as meze, before the main course. za'atar, minced beef, and cheese manakish are popular hors d'œuvres. The Arabic flatbread khubz is always eaten together with meze(Sony VGN-NR11M/S Battery).

Drinks in Syria vary depending on the time of the day and the occasion. Arabic coffee, also known as Turkish coffee is the most well-known hot drink usually prepared in the morning at breakfast or in the evening. It is usually served for guests or after food. Arak, an alcoholic drink, is also a well-known beverage served mostly on special occasions. More examples of Syrian beverages include Ayran, Jallab, White coffee, and a locally manufactured beer called Al Shark. (Sony VGN-NR260E/S Battery)

Education is free and compulsory from ages 6 to 12. Schooling consists of 6 years of primary education followed by a 3-year general or vocational training period and a 3-year academic or vocational program. The second 3-year period of academic training is required for university admission. Total enrollment at post-secondary schools is over 150,000. The literacy rate of Syrians aged 15 and older is 90.7% for males and 82.2% for females(Sony VGN-NR11Z/S Battery).

Since 1967, all schools, colleges, and universities have been under close government supervision by the Ba'ath Party.[115]

There are 6 state universities in Syria,[116] and 15 private universities.[117] The top two state universities are University of Damascus (180,000 students),[118] and University of Aleppo.[119] The top private universities in Syria are: Syrian Private University, Arab International University, University of Kalamoon and International University for Science and Technology(Sony VGN-NR11Z/T Battery). There are also many higher institutes in Syria like the Higher Institute of Business Administration which offer undergraduate and graduate programs in business.

Damascus (Arabic: دمشق‎ Dimashq, Metropolitan Arabic: Dimisheʼ ), commonly known in Syria as ash-Sham (Arabic: الشام‎ ash-Shām) and nicknamed as the City of Jasmine (Arabic: مدينة الياسمين‎ Madīnat al-Yāsmīn), is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo. It borders Quneitra, Daraa and As-Suwayda to the south, Jordan to the east, Homs to the north, and Lebanon to the west(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21E battery). It is also the capital city of one of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major cultural and religious center of the Levant. The city has an estimated population of 1,711,000 (2009 est.).[1]

Located in southwestern Syria, Damascus is the center of a large metropolitan area of 2.6 million people (2004).[3] Geographically embedded on the eastern foothills of the Anti-Lebanon mountain range 80 kilometres (50 mi) inland from the eastern shore of the Mediterranean on a plateau 680 metres (2,230 ft) above sea-level, Damascus experiences a semi-arid climate due to the rain shadow effect. The Barada River flows through Damascus(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21Z battery).

First settled in the 2nd millennium BC, it was chosen as the capital of the Umayyad Caliphate from 661 to 750. After the victory of the Abbasid dynasty, the seat of Islamic power was moved to Baghdad. Damascus saw a political decline throughout the Abbasid era, only to regain significant importance in the Ayyubid and Mamluk periods. During Ottoman rule, the city decayed completely while maintaining a certain cultural prestige(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21J battery). Today, it is the seat of the central government and all of the government ministries. During the ongoing civil war in Syria, Damascus has witnessed intense anti-government protests and violent government responses in which hundreds of people died.

The name of Damascus first appeared in the geographical list of Thutmose III as T-m-ś-q in the 15th century BC.[4] The etymology of the ancient name "T-m-ś-q" is uncertain, but it is suspected to be pre-Semitic(Sony VAIO VGN-FW11 battery). It is attested as Dimašqa in Akkadian, T-ms-ḳw in Egyptian, Dammaśq (דמשק) in Old Aramaic and Dammeśeq (דמשק) in Biblical Hebrew. The Akkadian spelling is found in the Amarna letters, from the 14th century BC. Later Aramaic spellings of the name often include an intrusive resh (letter r), perhaps influenced by the root dr, meaning "dwelling". Thus, the Qumranic Darmeśeq (דרמשק), and Darmsûq (ܕܪܡܣܘܩ) in Syriac.[5][6] The English and Latin name of the city is "Damascus" which was imported from Greek: Δαμασκός, which originated in Aramaic: דרמשק‎;(Sony VAIO VGN-FW11M battery) "a well-watered place".[7][8] In Arabic, the city is called Dimashqu sh-Shām (دمشق الشام), although this is often shortened to either Dimashq or ash-Shām by the citizens of Damascus, of Syria and other Arab neighbors. Ash-Shām is an Arabic term for "Levant" and for "Syria"; the latter, and particularly historical Greater Syria, is called Bilādu sh-Shām (بلاد الشام / "land of the Levant").

Carbon-14 dating at Tell Ramad, on the outskirts of Damascus, suggests that the site may have been occupied since the second half of the seventh millennium BC, possibly around 6300 BC.[9] However, evidence of settlement in the wider Barada basin dating back to 9000 BC exists, although no large-scale settlement was present within Damascus walls until the second millennium BC. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW11S battery)

Damascus was part of the ancient province of Amurru in the Hyksos Kingdom, from 1720 to 1570 BC.[11] Some of the earliest Egyptian records are from the 1350 BC Amarna letters, when Damascus-(called Dimasqu) was ruled by king Biryawaza. The Damascus region, as well as the rest of Syria, became a battleground circa 1260 BC, between the Hittites from the north and the Egyptians from the south,[12] ending with a signed treaty between Hattusili and Ramesses II where the former handed over control of the Damascus area to Ramesses II in 1259 BC. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW21E battery) The arrival of the Sea Peoples, around 1200 BC, marked the end of the Bronze Age in the region and brought about new development of warfare.[13] Damascus was only the peripheral part of this picture which mostly affected the larger population centers of ancient Syria. However, these events had contributed to the development of Damascus as a new influential center that emerged with the transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW21J battery)

Damascus is mentioned in Genesis 14:15 as existing at the time of the War of the Kings.[14] (However, the verse can also be understood to mean that Damascus existed when Genesis was written – by tradition around the 13th century BC, and several centuries later according to some[who?] scholars – regardless of whether Damascus existed at the time of the War of the Kings.) (Sony VAIO VGN-FW21L battery) According to the 1st century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus in his twenty-one volume Antiquities of the Jews, Damascus (along with Trachonitis), was founded by Uz, the son of Aram. Elsewhere,[where?] he stated:

Nicolaus of Damascus, in the fourth book of his History, says thus: "Abraham reigned at Damascus, being a foreigner, who came with an army out of the land above Babylon, called the land of the Chaldeans: but, after a long time, he got him up, and removed from that country also, with his people, and went into the land then called the land of Canaan(Sony VAIO VGN-FW41M battery), but now the land of Judea, and this when his posterity were become a multitude; as to which posterity of his, we relate their history in another work. Now the name of Abraham is even still famous in the country of Damascus; and there is shown a village named from him, The Habitation of Abraham.

Damascus is not documented as an important city until the arrival of the Aramaeans, Semitic people from Mesopotamia(Sony VAIO VGN-FW41M/H battery), in the 11th century BC. By the start of the 1st millennium BC, several Aramaic kingdoms were formed, as Aramaeans abandoned their nomadic lifestyle and formed federated tribal states. One of these kingdoms was Aram-Damascus, centered on its capital Damascus.[15] The Aramaeans who entered the city without battle, adopted the name "Dimashqu" for their new home. Noticing the agricultural potential of the still-undeveloped and sparsely populated area, (Sony VAIO VGN-FW21M battery) they established the water distribution system of Damascus by constructing canals and tunnels which maximized the efficiency of the river Barada. The same network was later improved by the Romans and the Umayyads, and still forms the basis of the water system of the old part of the city today.[17] The Aramaeans initially turned Damascus into an outpost of a loose federation of Aramaean tribes, known as Aram-Zobah, based in the Beqaa Valley. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW21Z battery)

The city would gain preeminence in southern Syria when Ezron, the claimant to Aram-Zobah's throne who was denied kingship of the federation, fled Beqaa and captured Damascus by force in 965 BC. Ezron overthrew the city's tribal governor and founded the independent entity of Aram-Damascus. As this new state expanded south, it prevented the Kingdom of Israel from spreading north and the two kingdoms soon clashed as they both sought to dominate trading hegemony in the east. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW32J battery) Under Ezron's grandson, Ben-Hadad I (880–841 BC), and his successor Hazael, Damascus annexed Bashan (modern-day Hauran region), and went on the offensive with Israel. This conflict continued until the early 8th century BC when Ben-Hadad II was captured by Israel after unsuccessfully besieging Samaria. As a result, he granted Israel trading rights in Damascus. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW17W battery)

Another possible reason for the treaty between Aram-Damascus and Israel was the common threat of the Neo-Assyrian Empire which was attempting to expand into the Mediterranean coast. In 853 BC, King Hadadezer of Damascus led a Levantine coalition, that included forces from the northern Aram-Hamath kingdom and troops supplied by King Ahab of Israel, in the Battle of Qarqar against the Neo-Assyrian army. Aram-Damascus came out victorious(Sony VAIO VGN-FW31E battery), temporarily preventing the Assyrians from encroaching into Syria. However, after Hadadzezer was killed by his successor, Hazael II, the Levantine alliance collapsed. Aram-Damascus attempted to invade Israel, but was interrupted by the renewed Assyrian invasion. Hazael ordered a retreat to the walled part of Damascus while the Assyrians plundered the remainder of the kingdom. Unable to enter the city, they declared their supremacy in the Hauran and Beqa'a valleys. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW139E battery)

By the 8th century BC, Damascus was practically engulfed by the Assyrians and entered a dark age. Nonetheless, it remained the economic and cultural center of the Near East as well as the Arameaen resistance. In 727, a revolt took place in the city, but was put down by Assyrian forces. After Assyria went on a wide-scale campaign of quelling revolts throughout Syria, Damascus became totally subjugated by their rule(Sony VAIO VGN-FW139E/H battery). A positive effect of this was stability for the city and benefits from the spice and incense trade with Arabia. However, Assyrian authority was dwindling by 609–605 BC, and Syria-Palestine was falling into the orbit of Pharaoh Necho II's Egypt. In 572, all of Syria had been conquered by the Neo-Babylonians, but the status of Damascus under Babylon is relatively unknown. (Sony VAIO VGN-FW31M battery)

The Straight Street of Damascus, the Biblical "Street called Straight"

Damascus was conquered by Alexander the Great. After the death of Alexander in 323 BC, Damascus became the site of a struggle between the Seleucid and Ptolemaic empires. The control of the city passed frequently from one empire to the other. Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander's generals, made Antioch the capital of his vast empire, which led to the decline of Damascus' importance compared with new Seleucid cities such as Latakia in the north(Sony VAIO VGN-FW31J battery). Later, Demetrius III Philopator rebuilt the city according to the Greek hippodamian system and renamed it "Demetrias".

In 64 BC, the Roman general Pompey annexed the western part of Syria. The Romans occupied Damascus and subsequently incorporated it into the league of ten cities known as the Decapolis because it was considered such an important center of Greco-Roman culture. According to the New Testament, Saint Paul was on the road to Damascus when he received a vision of Jesus(Sony VAIO VGN-FW31Z battery), and as a result accepted Him as the Messiah. In the year 37, Roman Emperor Caligula transferred Damascus to Nabataean control by decree.[citation needed] The Nabataean king Aretas IV Philopatris ruled Damascus from his capital Petra. However, around the year 106, Nabataea was conquered by the Romans, and Damascus returned to Roman control(Sony VGN-NR11Z Battery).

Damascus became a metropolis by the beginning of the 2nd century and in 222 it was upgraded to a colonia by the Emperor Septimius Severus. During the Pax Romana, Damascus and the Roman province of Syria in general began to prosper. Damascus's importance as a caravan city was evident with the trade routes from southern Arabia, Palmyra, Petra, and the silk routes from China all converging on it. The city satisfied the Roman demands for eastern luxuries(Sony VGN-NR11S Battery).

Little remains of the architecture of the Romans, but the town planning of the old city did have a lasting effect. The Roman architects brought together the Greek and Aramaean foundations of the city and fused them into a new layout measuring approximately 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) by 750 metres (2,460 ft), surrounded by a city wall. The city wall contained seven gates, but only the eastern gate (Bab Sharqi) remains from the Roman period. Roman Damascus lies mostly at depths of up to five meters (16.4 ft) below the modern city(Sony VGN-NR110E Battery).

The old borough of Bab Tuma was developed at the end of the Roman/Byzantine era by the local Eastern Orthodox community. According to the Acts of the Apostles, Saint Paul and Saint Thomas both lived in that neighborhood. Roman Catholic historians also consider Bab Tuma to be the birthplace of several Popes such as John V and Gregory III(Sony VGN-CR11Z Battery).

After most of the Syrian countryside was conquered by the Rashidun Caliphate during the reign of Caliph Umar, Damascus itself was conquered by the Muslim-Arab general Khalid ibn al-Walid in September–August 635 CE. His army had previously attempted to capture the city in April 634, but without success.[20] With Damascus now in Muslim-Arab hands, the Byzantines, alarmed at the loss of their most prestigious city in the Near East, had decided to wrest back control of it(Sony VGN-CR11S Battery). Under Emperor Heraclius, the Byzantines fielded an army superior to that of the Rashidun in manpower. They advanced into southern Syria during the spring of 636 and consequently Khalid ibn al-Walid's forces withdrew from Damascus to prepare for renewed confrontation.[21] In August, the two powers met along the Yarmouk River where they a fought a major battle which ended in a decisive Muslim victory, solidifying the latter's rule in Syria and Palestine. (Sony VGN-CR11M Battery)

While the Muslims administrated the city, the population of Damascus remained mostly Christian—Eastern Orthodox and Monophysite—with a growing community of Muslims from Mecca, Medina, and the Syrian Desert.[23] The governor assigned to the city which had been chosen as the capital of Islamic Syria was Mu'awiya I. After the death of Caliph Ali in 661, Mu'awiya was chosen as the caliph of the expanding Islamic empire(Sony VGN-CR11E Battery). Because of the vast amounts of assets his clan, the Ummayads, owned in the city and because of its traditional economic and social links with the Hijaz as well as the Christian Arab tribes of the region, Mu'awiya established Damascus as the capital of the entire Caliphate.[24] With the ascension of Caliph Abd al-Malik in 685, an Islamic coinage system was introduced and all of the surplus revenue of the Caliphate's provinces were forwarded to the treasury of Damascus(Sony VGN-CR21E Battery). Arabic was also established as the official language, giving the Muslim minority of the city an advantage over the Aramaic-speaking Christians in administrative affairs.[25] It is critical to note that, at the time Damascus was conquered by the Muslims, the majority of Arabs were either pagans or Christians. Damascus itself was predominantly Aramaic with Arab speaking people(Sony VGN-CR21S Battery).

Abd al-Malik's successor, al-Walid initiated construction of the Grand Mosque of Damascus (known as the Umayyad Mosque) in 706. The site originally had been the Christian Cathedral of St. John and the Muslims maintained the building's dedication to John the Baptist.[26] By 715, the mosque was complete. Al-Walid died that same year and he was succeeded at first by Suleiman ibn Abd al-Malik and then by Umar II(Sony VGN-CR21Z Battery), who each ruled for brief periods before the reign of Hisham in 724. With these successions, the status of Damascus was gradually weakening as Suleiman had chosen Ramla as his residence and later Hisham chose Rusafa. Following the murder of the latter in 743, the Caliphate of the Umayyads—which by then stretched from Spain to India— was crumbling as a result of widespread revolts. During the reign of Marwan II in 744, the capital of the empire was relocated to Harran in the northern Jazira region. (Sony VGN-CR31S Battery)

The dome of Damascus' treasury in the Umayyad Mosque

On 25 August 750, the Abbasids, having already beaten the Umayyads in the Battle of the Zab in Iraq, conquered Damascus after facing little resistance. With the heralding of the Abbasid Caliphate, Damascus became eclipsed and subordinated by Baghdad, the new Islamic capital. Within the first six months of Abbasid rule, revolts began erupting in the city, albeit too isolated and unfocused to present a viable threat(Sony VGN-CR31E Battery). Nonetheless, the last of the prominent Umayyads were executed, the traditional officials of Damascus ostracized, and army generals from the city were dismissed. Afterward, the Umayyad family cemetery was desecrated and the city walls were torn down, reducing Damascus into a provincial town of little importance. It roughly disappeared from written records for the next century and the only significant improvement of the city was the Abbasid-built treasury dome in the Umayyad Mosque in 789. In 811, distant remnants of the Umayyad dynasty staged a strong uprising in Damascus that was eventually put down. (Sony VGN-CR31Z Battery)

Ahmad ibn Tulun, a dissenting Turkish governor appointed by the Abbasids, conquered Syria, including Damascus, from his overlords in 878-79. In an act of respect for the previous Umayyad rulers, he erected a shrine on the site of Mu'awiya's grave in the city. Tulunid rule of Damascus was brief, lasting only until 906 before being replaced by the Qarmatians who were adherents of Shia Islam. Due to their inability to control the vast amount of land they occupied(Sony VGN-CR41Z Battery), the Qarmatians withdrew from Damascus and a new dynasty, the Ikhshidids, took control of the city. They maintained the independence of Damascus from the Arab Hamdanid dynasty of Aleppo and the Baghdad-based Abbasids until 967. A period of instability in the city followed, with a Qarmatian raid in 968, a Byzantine raid in 970, and increasing pressures from the Fatimids in the south and the Hamdanids in the north. (Sony VGN-CR41S Battery)

The Shia Fatimids gained control in 970, inflaming hostilities between them and the Sunni Arabs of the city who frequently revolted. A Turk, Alp Takin drove out the Fatimids five years later, and through diplomacy, prevented the Byzantines from attempting to annex the city. However, by 977, the Fatimids under Caliph al-Aziz, wrested back control of the city and tamed Sunni dissidents. The Arab geographer, al-Muqaddasi, visited Damascus in 985(Sony VGN-CR41E Battery), remarking that the architecture and infrastructure of the city was "magnificent", but living conditions were awful. Under al-Aziz, the city saw a brief period of stability that ended with the reign of al-Hakim (996–1021). In 998, Hundreds of Damascene leaders were rounded up and executed by him for incitement. Three years after al-Hakim's mysterious disappearance, the Arab tribes of southern Syria formed an alliance to stage a massive rebellion against the Fatimids, but they were crushed by the Fatimid Turkish governor of Syria and Palestine(Sony VGN-CR42Z Battery), Anushtakin al-Duzbari, in 1029. This victory gave the latter mastery over Syria, displeasing his Fatimid overlords, but gaining the admiration of Damascus' citizens. He was exiled by Fatimid authorities to Aleppo where he died in 1041.[30] From that date to 1063, there are no known records of the city's history. By then, Damascus lacked a city administration, had an enfeebled economy, and a greatly reduced population. (Sony VGN-CR42S Battery)

With the arrival of the Seljuq Turks in the late 11th century, Damascus again became the capital of independent states. It was ruled by Abu Sa'id Taj ad-Dawla Tutush I starting in 1079 and he was succeeded by his son Abu Nasr Duqaq in 1095. The Seljuqs established a court in Damascus and a systematic reversal of Shia inroads in the city. The city also saw an expansion of religious life through private endowments financing religious institutions (madrasas) and hospitals (maristans) (Sony VGN-CR42E Battery). Damascus soon became one of the most important centers of propagating Islamic thought in the Muslim world. After Duqaq's death in 1104, his mentor (atabeg), Toghtekin, took control of Damascus and the Burid line of the Seljuq dynasty. Under Duqaq and Toghtekin, Damascus experienced stability, elevated status and a revived role in commerce. In addition, the city's Sunni majority enjoyed being a part of the larger Sunni framework effectively governed by various Turkic dynasties who in turn were under the moral authority of the Baghdad-based Abbasids. (Sony Vaio VGN-CR11S/L Battery)

While the rulers of Damascus were preoccupied in conflict with their fellow Seljuqs in Aleppo and Diyarbakir, the Crusaders, who arrived in the Levant in 1097, conquered Jerusalem, Mount Lebanon and Palestine. Duqaq seemed to have been content with Crusader rule as a buffer between his dominion and the Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. Toghtekin, however, saw the Western invaders as a viable threat to Damascus which, at the time, nominally included Homs(Sony Vaio VGN-CR11S/P Battery), the Beqaa Valley, Hauran, and the Golan Heights a part of its territories. With military support from Sharaf al-Din Mawdud of Mosul, Toghtekin managed to halt Crusader raids in the Golan and Hauran. Mawdud was assassinated in the Umayyad Mosque in 1109, depriving Damascus of northern Muslim backing and forcing Toghtekin to agree to a truce with the Crusaders in 1110.[33]

Following Tughtakin's death in 1128, his son, Taj al-Din Buri, became the nominal ruler of Damascus. Coincidentally, the Seljuq prince of Mosul, Imad al-Din Zengi, took power in Aleppo and gained a mandate from the Abbasids to extend his authority to Damascus(Sony Vaio VGN-CR11S/W Battery). In 1129, around 6,000 Isma'ili Muslims were killed in the city along with their leaders. The Sunnis were provoked by rumors alleging there was a plot by the Isma'ilis, who controlled the strategic fort at Banias, to aid the Crusaders in capturing Damascus in return for control of Tyre. Soon after the massacre, the Crusaders aimed to take advantage of the unstable situation and launch an assault against Damascus with nearly 60,000 troops. However, Buri allied with Zengi and managed to prevent their army from reaching the city. (Sony Vaio VGN-CR13/B Battery) Buri was assassinated by Isma'ili agents in 1132; he was succeeded by his son, Shams al-Mulk Isma'il who ruled tyrannically until he himself was murdered in 1135 on secret orders from his mother, Safwat al-Mulk Zumurrud; Isma'il's brother, Shihab al-Din Mahmud, replaced him. Meanwhile, Zengi, intent on putting Damascus under his control, married Safwat al-Mulk in 1138. Mahmud's reign then ended in 1139 after he was killed for relatively unknown reasons by members of his family. Mu'in al-Din Unur, his mamluk ("slave soldier") took effective power of the city(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13/L Battery), prompting Zengi—with Safwat al-Mulk's backing—to lay siege against Damascus the same year. In response, Damascus allied with the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem to resist Zengi's forces. Consequently, Zengi withdrew his army and focused on campaigns against northern Syria.[35]

In 1144 Zengi conquered Edessa, a crusader stronghold, which led to a new crusade from Europe in 1148. In the meantime Zengi was assassinated and his territory was divided among his sons, one of whom, Nur ad-Din, emir of Aleppo, made an alliance with Damascus(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13/P Battery). When the European crusaders arrived, they and the nobles of Jerusalem agreed to attack Damascus. Their siege, however, was a complete failure. When the city seemed to be on the verge of collapse, the crusader army suddenly moved against another section of the walls, and were driven back. By 1154, Damascus was firmly under Nur ad-Din's control.[36]

The Statue of Saladin near the Citadel of Damascus(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13G Battery).

In 1164, King Amalric of Jerusalem invaded Fatimid Egypt, which requested help from Nur ad-Din. The Nur ad-Din sent his general Shirkuh, and in 1166 Amalric was defeated at the Battle of al-Babein. When Shirkuh died in 1169, he was succeeded by his nephew Yusuf, better known as Saladin, who defeated a joint crusader-Byzantine siege of Damietta.[37] Saladin eventually overthrew the Fatimid caliphs and established himself as Sultan of Egypt(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13G/B Battery). He also began to assert his independence from Nur ad-Din, and with the death of both Amalric and Nur ad-Din in 1174, he was well-placed to begin exerting control over Damascus and Nur ad-Din's other Syrian possessions.[38] In 1177 Saladin was defeated by the crusaders at the Battle of Montgisard, despite his numerical superiority.[39] Saladin also besieged Kerak in 1183, but was forced to withdraw. He finally launched a full invasion of Jerusalem in 1187(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13G/L Battery), and annihilated the crusader army at the Battle of Hattin in July. Acre fell to Saladin soon after, and Jerusalem itself was captured in October. These events shocked Europe, resulting in the Third Crusade in 1189, led by Richard I of England, Philip II of France and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, though the last drowned en route.[40]

The surviving crusaders, joined by new arrivals from Europe, put Acre to a lengthy siege which lasted until 1191(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13G/W Battery). After re-capturing Acre, Richard defeated Saladin at the Battle of Arsuf in 1191 and the Battle of Jaffa in 1192, recovering most of the coast for the Christians, but could not recover Jerusalem or any of the inland territory of the kingdom. The crusade came to an end peacefully, with the Treaty of Ramla in 1192. Saladin allowed pilgrimages to be made to Jerusalem, allowing the crusaders to fulfill their vows, after which they all returned home. The native crusader barons set about rebuilding their kingdom from Acre and the other coastal cities. (Sony Vaio VGN-CR13G/P Battery)

Saladin died in 1193, and there were frequent conflicts between different Ayyubid sultans ruling in Damascus and Cairo. Damascus was the capital of independent Ayyubid rulers between 1193 and 1201, from 1218 to 1238, from 1239 to 1245, and from 1250 to 1260. At other times it was ruled by the Ayyubid rulers of Egypt. The patterned Byzantine and Chinese silks available through Damascus, one of the Western termini of the Silk Road, gave the English language "damask"(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13T/L Battery).

Ayyubid rule (and independence) came to an end with the Mongol invasion of Syria in 1260, and following the Mongol defeat at Ain Jalut in the same year, Damascus became a provincial capital of the Mamluk Empire, ruled from Egypt, following the Mongol withdrawal. The Black Death of 1348–1349 killed as much as half of the city's population. (Sony Vaio VGN-CR13T/P Battery)

In 1400 Timur, the Turco-Mongol conqueror, besieged Damascus. The Mamluk sultan dispatched a deputation from Cairo, including Ibn Khaldun, who negotiated with him, but after their withdrawal he put the city to sack. The Umayyad Mosque was burnt and men and women taken into slavery. A huge number of the city's artisans were taken to Timur's capital at Samarkand. These were the luckier citizens: many were slaughtered and their heads piled up in a field outside the north-east corner of the walls, where a city square still bears the name burj al-ru'us, originally "the tower of heads"(Sony Vaio VGN-CR13T/R Battery).

Rebuilt, Damascus continued to serve as a Mamluk provincial capital until 1516.

In early 1516, the Ottoman Turks, wary of the danger of an alliance between the Mamluks and the Persian Safavids, started a campaign of conquest against the Mamluk sultanate. On 21 September, the Mamluk governor of Damascus fled the city, and on 2 October the khutba in the Umayyad mosque was pronounced in the name of Selim I. The day after, the victorious sultan entered the city, staying for three months. On 15 December(Sony Vaio VGN-CR21/B Battery), he left Damascus by Bab al-Jabiya, intent on the conquest of Egypt. Little appeared to have changed in the city: one army had simply replaced another. However, on his return in October 1517, the sultan ordered the construction of a mosque, tekkiye and mausoleum at the shrine of Shaikh Muhi al-Din ibn Arabi in al-Salihiyah. This was to be the first of Damascus' great Ottoman monuments(Sony Vaio VGN-CR21E/L Battery).

The Ottomans remained for the next 400 years, except for a brief occupation by Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt from 1832 to 1840. Because of its importance as the point of departure for one of the two great Hajj caravans to Mecca, Damascus was treated with more attention by the Porte than its size might have warranted—for most of this period, Aleppo was more populous and commercially more important. In 1560 the Tekkiye al-Sulaimaniyah, a mosque and khan for pilgrims on the road to Mecca, was completed to a design by the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan, and soon afterwards a madrasa was built adjoining it(Sony Vaio VGN-CR21E/P Battery).

Under Ottoman rule, Christians and Jews were considered dhimmis and were allowed to practice their religious precepts. The Damascus affair that took place in 1840 was an incident in which the accusation of ritual murder was brought against members of the Jewish community of Damascus. In addition the massacre of Christians in 1860 was also one of the most notorious incidents of these centuries, when fighting between Druze and Maronites in Mount Lebanon spilled over into the city(Sony Vaio VGN-CR21E/W Battery). Several thousand Christians were killed, with many more being saved through the intervention of the Algerian exile Abd al-Qadir and his soldiers (three days after the massacre started), who brought them to safety in Abd al-Qadir's residence and the citadel. The Christian quarter of the old city (mostly inhabited by Catholics), including a number of churches, was burnt down. The Christian inhabitants of the notoriously poor and refractory Midan district outside the walls (mostly Orthodox) were, however, protected by their Muslim neighbours(Sony Vaio VGN-CR21S/L Battery).

American Missionary E.C. Miller records that in 1867 the population of the city was 'about' 140,000, of whom 30,000 were Christians, 10,000 Jews and 100,000 'Mohammedans' with fewer than 100 Protestant Christians.[43]

Damascus in flames as a result of the French air raid on 18 October 1925

In the early years of the 20th century, nationalist sentiment in Damascus, initially cultural in its interest, began to take a political colouring, largely in reaction to the turkicisation programme of the Committee of Union and Progress government established in Istanbul in 1908(Sony Vaio VGN-CR21S/P Battery). The hanging of a number of patriotic intellectuals by Jamal Pasha, governor of Damascus, in Beirut and Damascus in 1915 and 1916 further stoked nationalist feeling, and in 1918, as the forces of the Arab Revolt and the British Imperial forces approached, residents fired on the retreating Turkish troops.

On 1 October 1918, T. E. Lawrence entered Damascus, the third arrival of the day, the first being the 3rd Australian Light Brigade, led by Major A.C.N. 'Harrry' Olden.[44] Two days later, 3 October 1918, the forces of the Arab revolt led by Prince Faysal also entered Damascus. (Sony Vaio VGN-CR23/B Battery) A military government under Shukri Pasha was named and Faisal ibn Hussein was proclaimed king of Syria. Political tension rose in November 1917, when the new Bolshevik government in Russia revealed the Sykes-Picot Agreement whereby Britain and France had arranged to partition the Arab east between them. A new Franco-British proclamation on 17 November promised the "complete and definitive freeing of the peoples so long oppressed by the Turks." (Sony Vaio VGN-CR23/P Battery) The Syrian National Congress in March adopted a democratic constitution. However, the Versailles Conference had granted France a mandate over Syria, and in 1920 a French army commanded by the General Mariano Goybet crossed the Anti-Lebanon Mountains, defeated a small Syrian defensive expedition at the Battle of Maysalun and entered Damascus. The French made Damascus capital of their League of Nations Mandate for Syria(Sony Vaio VGN-CR23/R Battery).

When in 1925 the Druze revolt in the Hauran spread to Damascus, the French suppressed it brutally, bombing and shelling the city on 9 May 1926. As a result the area of the old city between Al-Hamidiyah Souq and Medhat Pasha Souq was burned to the ground, with many deaths, and has since then been known as al-Hariqa ("the fire"). The old city was surrounded with barbed wire to prevent rebels infiltrating from the Ghouta, and a new road was built outside the northern ramparts to facilitate the movement of armored cars(Sony VAIO VGN-NW21EF/S battery).

On 21 June 1941, 3 weeks into the Allied Syria-Lebanon campaign, Damascus was captured from the Vichy French forces by a mixed British Indian and Free French force.

On 29 May 1945, the French once more bombed Damascus, but on this occasion British forces intervened and the French agreed to withdraw, thus leading to the full independence of Syria in 1946. Damascus remained the capital(Sony VAIO VGN-NW21JF battery).

Main articles: Syrian civil war and Damascus clashes (2011–present)

See also: Casualties of the Syrian civil war

The uprising started with peaceful protests in the spring of 2011 and had grown to a civil war over the past year. On 6 January 2012, a car bomb exploded in Damascus killing over than 26 people, most of them civilians. State media said it was a suicide attack and blamed terrorists.[46] In January 2012, clashes between the regular army and rebels reached the outskirts of Damascus, reportedly preventing people from leaving or reaching their houses, especially when security operations there intensified from the end of January into February. (Sony VAIO VGN-NW21MF battery)

On 17 March 2012, twin car bombs hit the heart of the city, targeting the Air Force Intelligence Service and the headquarters of the Security Forces killing at least 27 people, most of them civilians.[48] An Islamic Jihadi faction called "Jabhat al-Nusra" claimed responsibility for the bomb attacks.[49] In the early morning of 19 March, firefights and explosions broke out in the West Villas section of the heavily guarded and upscale Mezzeh neighborhood. (Sony VAIO VGN-NW21MF/W battery)

By June 2012, bullets and shrapnel shells smashed into homes in Damascus overnight as troops battled the Free Syrian Army in the streets. At least three tank shells slammed into residential areas in the central Damascus neighborhood of Qaboun, according to activist. Intense exchanges of assault-rifle fire marked the clash, according to residents and amateur video posted online.[51]

Since the Battle of Damascus, the city has witnessed a security crackdown(Sony VAIO VGN-NW31EF/W battery). Checkpoints have sprung up in the city, and the sight of red dirt spilling from sandbags and IDs held out the window, of Kalashnikov-toting Shabiha and soldiers have become widespread. Traffic jams, like unemployment, became widespread and countryside refugees sleep in city parks.

Damascus in spring seen from Spot satellite

Damascus lies about 80 km (50 mi) inland from the Mediterranean, sheltered by the Anti-Lebanon mountains. It lies on a plateau 680 metres (2,230 ft) above sea-level. The city has an area of 105 km2 (41 sq mi), out of which 77 km2 (30 sq mi) is urban, while Jabal Qasioun occupies the rest. (Sony VAIO VGN-NW21ZF battery)

One of the rare periods the Barada river is high, seen here next to the Four Seasons hotel in downtown Damascus

The old city of Damascus, enclosed by the city walls, lies on the south bank of the river Barada which is almost dry (3 cm left). To the south-east, north and north-east it is surrounded by suburban areas whose history stretches back to the Middle Ages: Midan in the south-west, Sarouja and Imara in the north and north-west. These neighborhoods originally arose on roads leading out of the city, near the tombs of religious figures(Sony VAIO VGN-NW31JF battery). In the 19th century outlying villages developed on the slopes of Jabal Qasioun, overlooking the city, already the site of the al-Salihiyah neighborhood centred around the important shrine of Sheikh Muhi al-Din ibn Arabi. These new neighborhoods were initially settled by Kurdish soldiery and Muslim refugees from the European regions of the Ottoman Empire which had fallen under Christian rule. Thus they were known as al-Akrad (the Kurds) and al-Muhajirin (the migrants). They lay two to three kilometres (2 mi) north of the old city(Sony VAIO VGN-NW320F/B battery).

From the late 19th century on, a modern administrative and commercial centre began to spring up to the west of the old city, around the Barada, centred on the area known as al-Marjeh or the meadow. Al-Marjeh soon became the name of what was initially the central square of modern Damascus, with the city hall on it. The courts of justice, post office and railway station stood on higher ground slightly to the south. A Europeanised residential quarter soon began to be built on the road leading between al-Marjeh and al-Salihiyah(Sony VAIO VGN-NW11S/S battery). The commercial and administrative centre of the new city gradually shifted northwards slightly towards this area.

In the 20th century, newer suburbs developed north of the Barada, and to some extent to the south, invading the Ghouta oasis. From 1955 the new neighborhood of Yarmouk became a second home to thousands of Palestinian refugees. City planners preferred to preserve the Ghouta as far as possible, and in the later 20th century some of the main areas of development were to the north, in the western Mezzeh neighborhood and most recently along the Barada valley in Dummar in the north west and on the slopes of the mountains at Berze in the north-east(Sony VAIO VGN-NW11Z/S battery). Poorer areas, often built without official approval, have mostly developed south of the main city.

Damascus used to be surrounded by an oasis, the Ghouta region (الغوطة al-ġūṭä), watered by the Barada river. The Fijeh spring, west along the Barada valley, used to provide the city with drinking water. The Ghouta oasis has been decreasing in size with the rapid expansion of housing and industry in the city and it is almost dry. It has also become polluted due to the city's traffic, industry, and sewage(Sony VAIO VGN-NW11S/T battery).

Damascus has a hot arid climate (Köppen Bsh), due to the rain shadow effect of the Anti-Lebanon mountains[53] and the prevailing ocean currents. Summers are dry and hot with less humidity. Winters are mild and comparatively rainy, sometimes snowy. Annual rainfall is around 130 mm (5 in), occurring from October to May(Sony VAIO VGN-NW11Z/T battery).

The historical role that Damascus played as an important trade center has changed in recent years due to political development in the region as well as the development of modern trade.[57] Most goods produced in Damascus, as well as in Syria, are distributed to Countries of the Arabian peninsula.[57] Damascus also holds an annual international trade exposition in the fall since 1955. (SONY VGP-BPS10A battery)

Damascus has the potential for a highly successful tourism industry. The abundance of cultural wealth in Damascus has been modestly employed since the late 1980s with the development of many accommodation and transportation establishments and other related investments.[57] Since the early 2000s, numerous boutique hotels and bustling cafes opened in the old city which attract plenty of European tourists and Damascenes alike. (SONY VGP-BPS10A/B battery)

The real-estate sector is booming in Damascus. Real-estate adviser Cushman & Wakefield listed Damascus office space as the eighth most expensive in the world in 2009.[59] The office market in Damascus is rather immature and the demand for premium office space surpasses supply. However, new supply of office space is expected to be delivered in 2009.[60] Damascus is home to a wide range of industrial activity, such as Textile, food processing(SONY VGP-BPS10/B battery), Cement and various Chemical industries.[57] The majority of factories are run by the state, however. Limited privatization in addition to economic activities let by the private sector were permitted starting in the early 2000s with the liberalization of trade that took place.[57] Traditional handcrafts and artisan copper engraving are still produced in the old city.[57]

The Damascus stock exchange formally opened for trade in March 2009, and the exchange is the only stock exchanges in Syria. (SONY VGP-BPS10/S battery) It is currently located in the Barzeh district, within Syria's financial markets and securities commission. Its final home is to be the upmarket business district of Yaafur.[62]

Three Damascene women; lady wearing qabqabs, a Druze, and a peasant, 1873

The estimated population of Damascus in 2011 was 1,711,000. But Damascus is the centre of an over-crowded metropolitan area with an estimated population of 5 million. The metropolitan area of Damascus includes the cities of Douma, Harasta, Darayya, Al-Tall and Jaramana.

The majority of the inhabitants of Damascus—about 85%—are Muslims, of which more than half (65%) are Sunni Muslims, the remainder being alawites(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ130E battery), shiites and Muslims of other heterodox sects. It is believed that there are more than 2,000 mosques in Damascus, the most well-known being the Umayyad Mosque.[63][verification needed] Christians represent 10% of the population.[citation needed] There are few Christian districts in the city, such as Bab Tuma, Qassaa and Ghassani, with many churches, most notably the ancient Chapel of Saint Paul. At the suburb Soufanieh a series of apparitions of the Virgin Mary have reportedly been observed between 1982 and 2004. (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15L battery)

There is a small Jewish community namely in what is called Haret al-Yahud the Jewish quarter. They are the remnants of an ancient and much larger Jewish presence in Syria, dating back at least to Roman times, if not before to the time of King David.[65]

Damascus has a wealth of historical sites dating back to many different periods of the city's history. Since the city has been built up with every passing occupation, it has become almost impossible to excavate all the ruins of Damascus that lie up to 8 feet (2.4 m) (Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15M battery) below the modern level. The Citadel of Damascus is located in the northwest corner of the Old City. The Damascus Straight Street (referred to in the conversion of St. Paul in Acts 9:11), also known as the Via Recta, was the decumanus (East-West main street) of Roman Damascus, and extended for over 1,500 metres (4,900 ft). Today, it consists of the street of Bab Sharqi and the Souk Medhat Pasha, a covered market. The Bab Sharqi street is filled with small shops and leads to the old Christian quarter of Bab Tuma (St. Thomas's Gate). Medhat Pasha Souq is also a main market in Damascus and was named after Midhat Pasha(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ15S battery), the Ottoman governor of Syria who renovated the Souk. At the end of the Bab Sharqi street, one reaches the House of Ananias, an underground chapel that was the cellar of Ananias's house. The Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Grand Mosque of Damascus, is one of the largest mosques in the world and also one of the oldest sites of continuous prayer since the rise of Islam. A shrine in the mosque is said to contain the body of St. John the Baptist. The mausoleum where Saladin was buried is located in the gardens just outside the mosque(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ17G battery). Sayyidah Ruqayya Mosque, the shrine of the youngest daughter of Husayn ibn Ali, can also be found near the Umayyad Mosque. The ancient district of Amara is also within a walking distance from these sites. Another heavily visited site is Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque, where the tomb of Zaynab bint Ali is located.

Shias, Fatemids and Dawoodi Bohras believe that after the battle of Karbala (680 AD), in Iraq, the Ummayad caliph Yezid brought Imam Husain's head to Damascus, where it was first kept in the courtyard of Yezid Mahal(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ17L battery), now part of Umayyad Mosque complex. All other remaining members of Imam Husain's family (left alive after Karbala) along with heads of all other companions, who were killed at Karbala, were also brought to Damascus. These members were kept as prisoners on the outskirts of the city (near Bab al-Saghir), where the other heads were kept at the same location, now called "Raous-us-sohda-e-karbala", visited by all Shias. There is a qibla (place of worship) marked at the place, where Imam Ali-Zain-ul-Abedin used to pray while in captivity(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ180E battery).

The Old City of Damascus with an approximate area of 128 hectares[66] is surrounded by ramparts on the northern and eastern sides and part of the southern side. There are seven extant city gates, the oldest of which dates back to the Roman period. These are, clockwise from the north of the citadel:

Bab Sharqi ("eastern gate") in the east wall, the only one to retain its Roman plan

Bab Kisan in the south-east, from which tradition holds that Saint Paul made his escape from Damascus, lowered from the ramparts in a basket; this gate has been closed and turned into Saint Paul Chapel marking this event(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ180E/B battery),

Bab al-Jabiya at the entrance to Souk Midhat Pasha, in the south-west.

Other areas outside the walled city also bear the name "gate": Bab al-Faraj, Bab Mousalla and Bab Sreija, both to the south-west of the walled city.

Due to the rapid decline of the population of Old Damascus (between 1995–2005 more than 20,000 people moved out of the old city for more modern accommodation), a growing number of buildings are being abandoned or are falling into disrepair. In March 2007, the local government announced that it would be demolishing Old City buildings along a 1,400-metre (4,600 ft) stretch of rampart walls as part of a redevelopment scheme(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ18E battery). These factors resulted in the Old City being placed by the World Monuments Fund on its 2008 Watch List of the 100 Most Endangered Sites in the world. It is hoped that its inclusion on the list will draw more public awareness to these significant threats to the future of the historic Old City of Damascus.

[edit]Current state of old Damascus

In spite of the recommendations of the UNESCO World Heritage Center:[67]

Souk El Atik, a protected buffer zone, was destroyed in three days in November 2006;

King Faysal Street, a traditional hand-craft region in a protected buffer zone near the walls of Old Damascus between the Citadel and Bab Touma, is threatened by a proposed motorway(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ18G battery).

In 2007, the Old City of Damascus and notably the district of Bab Tuma have been recognized by The World Monument Fund as one of the most endangered sites in the world.[68]

In October 2010, Global Heritage Fund named Damascus one of 12 cultural heritage sites most "on the verge" of irreparable loss and destruction.[69]

The main airport is Damascus International Airport, approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) away from the city, with connections to many Asian, European, African, and recently, South American cities. Streets in Damascus are often narrow, especially in the older parts of the city, and speed bumps are widely used to limit the speed of vehicles(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ18S battery).

Public transport in Damascus depends extensively on minibuses. There are about one hundred lines that operate inside the city and some of them extend from the city center to nearby suburbs. There is no schedule for the lines, and due to the limited number of official bus stops, buses will usually stop wherever a passenger needs to get on or off. The number of buses serving the same line is relatively high, which minimizes the waiting time(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ18T battery). Lines are not numbered, rather they are given captions mostly indicating the two end points and possibly an important station along the line and Taxicab.

Served by Chemins de Fer Syriens, the former main railway station of Damascus was al-Hejaz railway station, about 1 km west of the old city. The station is now defunct and the tracks have been removed, but there still is a ticket counter and a shuttle to Damacus Kadam station in the south of the city, which now functions as the main railway station(Sony VAIO VGN-FZ190E battery).

In 2008, the government announced a plan to construct a Damascus Metro with opening time for the green line scheduled for 2015.[70] The green line will be an essential West-East axis for the future public transportation network, serving Moadamiyeh, Sumariyeh, Mezzeh, Damascus University, Hijaz, the Old City, Abbassiyeen and Qaboun Pullman bus station. A four-line metro network is expected be in operation by 2050(SONY Vaio VGN-SR11M Battery).

Damascus was chosen as the 2008 Arab Capital of Culture.[71] The Arab Capital of Culture is an initiative undertaken by UNESCO, under the Cultural Capitals Program to promote and celebrate Arab culture and encourage cooperation in the Arab region.[72] The preparation for the festivity began in February 2007 with the establishing of the Administrative Committee for "Damascus Arab Capital of Culture" by a presidential decree(SONY Vaio VGN-SR12G/B Battery).

Popular sports include football, basketball, swimming, tennis, table tennis, equestrian and chess. Damascus is home to many football clubs that participate in the Syrian Premier League including Al-Jaish, Al-Shurta, Al-Wahda and Al-Majd. Many Other sport clubs are located in several districts of the city: Barada SC, Qasioun SC, Nidal SC, al-Muhafaza SC, al-Fayhaa SC, al-Thawra SC, Dummar SC and al-Arin SC(SONY Vaio VGN-SR12G/P Battery).

The fifth and the seventh Pan Arab Games were held in Damascus in 1976 and 1992 respectively.

Damascus has quite busy midnights. Coffeehouses, where —in addition to Arabic coffee and tea— nargileh (water pipes) are served, proliferate Damascus. Card games, tables (backgammon variants), and chess are activities frequented in cafés.[74]

Tishreen Park is one of the largest and popular parks in Damascus. It is home to the yearly-held Damascus Flower Show. Other parks include: al-Jahiz, al-Sibbki, al-Tijara, al-Wahda, etc. Damascus' Ghouta (Oasis) is also a popular weekend-destination for recreation(SONY Vaio VGN-SR12G/S Battery). Many recreation centres operate in the city including sport clubs, swimming pools and golf courses. The Syrian Arab Horse Association in Damascus offers a wide range of activities and services for horse breeders and riders.[75]

Madaya: a small mountainous town well known holiday resort.

Bloudan: a town located 51 km north-west of the Damascus, its moderate temperature and low humidity in summer attracts many visitors from Damascus and throughout Syria, Lebanon and the Persian Gulf(Sony VAIO VGN-SR21M/S battery).

Zabadani: a city in close to the border with Lebanon. Its mild weather along with the scenic views, made the town a popular resort both for tourists and for visitors from other Syrian cities.

Maaloula: a town dominated by speakers of Western Neo-Aramaic.

Saidnaya: a city located in the mountains, 1,500 metres (4,921 ft) above sea level, it was one of the episcopal cities of the ancient Patriarchate of Antioch(Sony VAIO VGN-SR25G/P battery).