Syria Government

What is the capital of Syria?

Country Name	Syria
Full Country Name	Syrian Arab Republic
Local - Long	Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah
Local - Short	Suriyah
Former Name	United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
Etymology- history of name	name ultimately derived from the ancient Assyrians who dominated northern Mesopotamia, but whose reach also extended westward to the Levant; over time, the name came to be associated more with the western area
Government Type	presidential republic; highly authoritarian regime
Capital Name	Damascus
Capital - geographic coordinate	33 30 N, 36 18 E
Capital Time Difference	UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Independence	17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
National Holiday	Independence Day (Evacuation Day), 17 April (1946); note - celebrates the leaving of the last French troops and the proclamation of full independence
Constitution	history: several previous; latest issued 15 February 2012, passed by referendum and effective 27 February 2012; note - UN-sponsored talks, which began in late 2019 between delegates from government and opposition forces to draft a new constitution; in March 2022, the 7th round of the Syrian Constitutional Committee ended in Geneva with no results amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by one third of the People’s Assembly members; following review by a special Assembly committee, passage requires at least three-quarters majority vote by the Assembly and approval by the president

Syria Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Syria Government and Politics

Who is the president of Syria?

Executive Branch:	chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Najah al-ATTAR (since 23 March 2006) head of government: Prime Minister Hussein ARNOUS (since 30 August 2020); Deputy Prime Minister Ali Abdullah AYOUB (Lt. Gen.) (since 30 August 2020) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections/appointments: president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 26 May 2021 (next to be held in 2028); the president appoints the vice president, prime minister, and deputy prime minister election results: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD (Ba'th Party) 95.2%, Mahmoud Ahmad MAREI (Democratic Arab Socialist Union) 3.3%, other1.5%
Citizenship Criteria:	citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Syria; if the father is unknown or stateless, the mother must be a citizen of Syria dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years
Legal System:	mixed legal system of civil and Islamic (sharia) law (for family courts)
Suffrage:	18 years of age; universal
Legislative Branch:	description: unicameral People's Assembly or Majlis al-Shaab (250 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by simple majority preferential vote to serve 4-year terms) elections: last held on 19 July 2020 (next to be held on 31 July 2024) election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 80%, other 20%; seats by party - NPF 200, other 50; composition - men 224, women 26, percentage women 10.4%
Judicial Branch:	highest court(s): Court of Cassation (organized into civil, criminal, religious, and military divisions, each with 3 judges); Supreme Constitutional Court (consists of 7 members) judge selection and term of office: Court of Cassation judges appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), a judicial management body headed by the minister of justice with 7 members, including the national president; judge tenure NA; Supreme Constitutional Court judges nominated by the president and appointed by the SJC; judges serve 4-year renewable terms subordinate courts: courts of first instance; magistrates' courts; religious and military courts; Economic Security Court; Counterterrorism Court (established June 2012)
Regions or States:	14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah (Latakia), Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq (Damascus), Halab (Aleppo), Hamah, Hims (Homs), Idlib, Rif Dimashq (Damascus Countryside), Tartus
Political Parties and Leaders:	legal parties/alliances: Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party [Bashar al-ASAD, regional secretary] Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party [President Bashar al-ASAD] Arab Socialist Union of Syria or ASU [Safwan al-QUDSI] Democratic Arab Socialist Union [Hassan Abdul AZIM, general secretary] National Progressive Front or NPF [Bashar al-ASAD, Suleiman QADDAH] (alliance includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party, Socialist Unionist Democratic Party) Socialist Unionist Party [Fayiz ISMAIL] Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallah Nasr al-DIN] Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yusuf Rashid FAYSAL] Syrian Social Nationalist Party or SSNP [Ali HAIDAR] Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL] major Kurdish political organizations: Kurdish Democratic Union Party or PYD [Saleh MUSLIM, Asia ABDULLAH] Kurdish National Council or KNC [Sa'ud MALA] Self-Administration of Northeast Syria or SANES [Abd Hamid al-MAHBASH] Syrian Democratic Council or SDC [Ilham AHMAD] other: Syrian Democratic Party [Mustafa QALAAJI]
International Law Organization Participation:	has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICC
International Organization Participation:	ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, ICSID, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WBG, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic Representation in the US:	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); note – operations at the embassy were suspended on 18 March 2014
Diplomatic Representation from US:	chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); note - on 6 February 2012, the US suspended operations at its embassy in Damascus; Czechia serves as a protecting power for US interests in Syria mailing address: 6110 Damascus Place, Washington DC 20521-6110 email address and website: USIS_damascus@embassy.mzv.cz https://sy.usembassy.gov/

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