This page to discover Syria

History

Archaeologists have demonstrated that Syria hosted one of the oldest civilizations and one of the oldest peoples of the ancient world.

In the excavated city of Ebla in northeastern Syria, archaeologists discovered in 1975 the remains of a great Semitic empire, which stretches from the Red Sea north to Turkey and east to 'in Mesopotamia.

This empire dating from 2500 to 2400 BC. AD makes the language of Ebla the oldest Semitic language in the world. Syria has other great archaeological sites like Mari, Ugarit and Doura Europos.

Syria was successively occupied by the Canaanites, Phoenicians, Hebrews, Arameans, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Armenians, Romans, Nabataeans, Byzantines, Arabs, and partly by the Crusaders, by the Ottoman Turks and finally by the French.

Syria is a significant country in the history of Christianity. Paul of Tarsus, the future Saint Paul, was converted to Christianity on the road to Damascus, and established a Church first in Antioch in ancient Syria (today in Turkey). It was from this port that he left for many of his mission trips.

Damascus was founded over 10,000 BC. AD; it is one of the oldest cities in the world and has been continuously inhabited the longest in the world (along with Varanasi and Jericho). After the entry of the Muslims into Syria, the city became the capital of the Umayyad Empire, thus achieving a prestige and a power still unequaled in Syrian history. This empire extended from Spain to Central Asia (661 to 750 AD). After the fall of the Umayyads, a new empire was created in Baghdad, the Abbasid Empire. In 1260 Damascus became the provincial capital of the Mamluk Empire. In 1400, the city was largely destroyed by Tamerlane: it was almost completely burnt down, and the Damascene craftsmen were kidnapped to go to work in Samarkand. Once rebuilt, the city served as the capital until 1516. In 1517, the city and the country fell under Ottoman occupation. The Ottomans ruled the country for more than 400 years until 1918, except when the Egyptian Ibrahim Pasha occupied the country from 1832 to 1840.

Policy

Officially, Syria is a parliamentary republic. Syrians are regularly called to the polls. The former Syrian president, Hafez el-Assad, head of state from 1970 until his death in 2000, was confirmed as head of state by five successive referendums. The current president is Bashar al-Assad, who succeeded his father on July 17, 2000. He too was officially elected by referendum in 2000.

Hafez el-Assad took power after a coup in 1970, after deposing Salah Jedid, he became Syria's strongman. Hafez el-Assad is, after King Hassan II of Morocco, the Arab head of state who has remained in power the longest. This longevity comes essentially from the fact that he was supported by religious minorities, including the Alawite religious minority. It is also supported by many farmers and Syrians living in rural areas. The expansion of the bureaucracy has created a middle class that remains loyal to the government. But most of its power came from the Syrian army and its security apparatus.

Another factor in his staying in power is nationalism, including the conflicts that opposed him and Syria to the United States, Israel and Saddam Hussein's Iraq.

With the coming to power of Bashar al-Assad in July 2000, the Syrians and in particular the activists for human rights hoped for a certain liberalization of the country; this is what has been called the spring of Damascus.

This first 'spring' did not last long, ending in February 2001, when the security services froze the activity of intellectual, cultural and political forums, and with the prosecution of human rights activists and their imprisonment . In this short period of 6 months, the Damascus spring will have seen intense political and social debates, on the one hand, and on the other hand it has retained an echo that rings in the political, cultural and intellectual debates until 2011.

It was in 2011, in the wake of the Arab Spring, that the Syrian civil war broke out, which confronted the Baathist system with its most serious challenge since its advent.

Geography

Most of the Syrian territory consists of a vast limestone plateau (hamada) surmounted by some ancient volcanic reliefs (djebel druze), and crossed to the northeast by the Euphrates river.

Syria is a predominantly arid country, particularly in the interior and in the east of the country. The average rainfall level is 318 mm per year but falls to less than 150 mm in the North-West, against more than 800 mm near the coast and nearly 1,400 in the mountains. The country is below the level of the shortage threshold since the resource per inhabitant stands at 947 m³ per year (the water stress threshold is generally set at 1,700 m³ per year and per inhabitant and the shortage threshold at 1,000 m³). Syria also receives its water from neighboring countries: 50% of the reserves come from Turkey, 20% from Lebanon. Another worrying factor, the exploitation of groundwater tables exceeds their capacity for renewal. Syria now exploits more than 50% of renewable resources, whereas the commonly accepted maximum threshold is 30%. The northeast of the country ("Jezireh") and the south ("Hawran") are important agricultural areas.

The country's major cities include Damascus in the southwest, Aleppo in the north, and Homs. The other important cities are mostly located on the coast. Syria has a temperate climate with four seasons. The average summer temperature reaches 32°C and the average winter temperature is 10°C. In spring and autumn the average temperature is 22°C. The winter timetable takes effect from November to March (+ 2 hours GMT). Summer time is applied from April to October (+ 3 hours GMT).

Economy

The official currency is the Syrian pound, symbol (£S), commonly known as the lira. It is equal to 100 Syrian piastres. Banknotes in circulation are worth: 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 £S, while coins are worth: 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 £S. International trade is part of everyday life. The share of foreign trade is 70% of its GDP. Its main trading partners are Germany, Lebanon, Iraq, Italy, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and France. Syria exports different products such as fruits and vegetables, livestock, cotton and oil. Its main imports are chemicals, industrial machinery, petroleum, iron and steel

Source : Wikipedia

When to leave?

The coast has a typical Mediterranean climate, with great heat during the summer, humid winds coming from the sea, and a fairly cool and rainy winter. The mountainous regions experience a harsher climate, with temperatures sometimes below zero in January, and fairly frequent snowfalls. The best times to visit the country are spring and autumn, thanks to the mild temperatures but also to the very beautiful light which reigns in the shoulder seasons.

Transport

Despite the overall good quality of the road network, the risk of accident is high. It is therefore recommended to travel using public transport, which is plentiful, or, if necessary, to use a rental vehicle with driver. or a taxi at very interesting prices. If you are on a circuit, the rolling stock is of good quality.

Sleep / Eat

No particular problem with regard to "sleeping", a legacy of a common past, Syrian cuisine offers many similarities with that of Greece, Turkey and Lebanon. It has, on the other hand, not much to do with that of the Maghreb (mezze, tabbouleh, hummus, roast chicken, skewers of lamb).

Purchase

Ceramics, leather, djellabas, pottery, olive objects, etc. Your suitcase will say stop!!

Useful websites

• Le routard (in french)
• Lonelyplanet