Syria
Syrian Arab Republic
Population
24.26M
Area
187,437 km²
GDP
$19.99B
GDP Per Capita
$4,200
Pop. Density
129/km²
Quick Facts
Currency
£Syrian pound(SYP)
Calling Code
+963
Timezone
UTC+02:00
Languages
Arabic
Driving Side
right
Demonym
Syrian
Background
After World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French administered the area until granting it independence in 1946. The new country lacked political stability and experienced a series of military coups. Syria united with Egypt in 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost control of the Golan Heights region to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional, albeit unsuccessful, peace talks over its return. In 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the socialist Ba'ath Party and the minority Alawi sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. Following the death of al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in 2000. Syrian troops that were stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role were withdrawn in 2005. During the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah. In 2007, Bashar al-ASAD's second term as president was again approved in a referendum.
In the wake of major uprisings elsewhere in the region, antigovernment protests broke out in the southern province of Dar'a in 2011. Protesters called for the legalization of political parties, the removal of corrupt local officials, and the repeal of the restrictive Emergency Law allowing arrests without charge. Demonstrations and violent unrest spread across Syria, and the government responded with concessions, but also with military force and detentions that led to extended clashes and eventually civil war. International pressure on the Syrian Government intensified after 2011, as the Arab League, the EU, Turkey, and the US expanded economic sanctions against the ASAD regime and those entities that supported it. In 2012, more than 130 countries recognized the Syrian National Coalition as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people. In 2015, Russia launched a military intervention on behalf of the ASAD regime, and domestic and foreign-government-aligned forces recaptured swaths of territory from opposition forces. With foreign support, the regime continued to periodically regain opposition-held territory until 2020, when Turkish firepower halted a regime advance and forced a stalemate between regime and opposition forces. The government lacks territorial control over much of the northeastern part of the country, which the predominantly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) hold, and a smaller area dominated by Turkey.
Since 2016, Turkey has conducted three large-scale military operations to capture territory along Syria's northern border. Some opposition forces organized under the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army and Turkish forces have maintained control of northwestern Syria along the Turkish border with the Afrin area of Aleppo Province since 2018. The violent extremist organization Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (formerly the Nusrah Front) emerged in 2017 as the predominant opposition force in Idlib Province, and still dominates an area also hosting Turkish forces. Negotiations have failed to produce a resolution to the conflict, and the UN estimated in 2022 that at least 306,000 people have died during the civil war. Approximately 6.7 million Syrians were internally displaced as of 2022, and 14.6 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance across the country. An additional 5.6 million Syrians were registered refugees in Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, and North Africa. The conflict in Syria remains one of the two largest displacement crises worldwide (the other is the full-scale invasion of Ukraine).
On 8 December 2024, Syrian Islamist rebels captured the capital city of Damascus and overthrew President Bashar al-ASAD. The former president and his family fled to Moscow, where they were granted political asylum. The al-ASAD regime had ruled Syria for over 50 years.
Historical Trends
GDP (USD)
↓30.0% since 2006Population
↑25.6% since 2006Life Expectancy at Birth
Latest: 72.1 yearsData source: World Bank Open Data
Geography19
Location
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey
Geographic coordinates
35 00 N, 38 00 E
Map references
Middle East
Area
land: 185,887 sq km
water: 1,550 sq km
Area - comparative
slightly more than 1.5 times the size of Pennsylvania
Land boundaries
border countries: Iraq 599 km; Israel 83 km; Jordan 379 km; Lebanon 403 km; Turkey 899 km
Coastline
193 km
Maritime claims
contiguous zone: 24 nm
Climate
mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
Terrain
primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west
Elevation
lowest point: Yarmuk River -66 m
mean elevation: 514 m
Natural resources
petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower
Land use
agricultural land
agricultural land: arable land
agricultural land: permanent crops
agricultural land: permanent pasture
forest
other
Irrigated land
9,820 sq km (2022)
Major rivers (by length in km)
note: [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Population distribution
significant population density along the Mediterranean coast; larger concentrations found in the major cities of Damascus, Aleppo (the country's largest city), and Hims (Homs); more than half of the population lives in the coastal plain, the province of Halab, and the Euphrates River valley
Natural hazards
volcanism: Syria's two historically active volcanoes, Es Safa and an unnamed volcano near the Turkish border, have not erupted in centuries
Geography - note
the capital of Damascus is located at an oasis fed by the Barada River and is thought to be one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities; there are Israeli settlements and civilian land-use sites in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights (2017)
People & Society29
Population
male: 12,183,128
female: 12,078,754
Nationality
adjective: Syrian
Ethnic groups
Arab ~50%, Alawite ~15%, Kurd ~10%, Levantine ~10%, other ~15% (includes Druze, Ismaili, Imami, Nusairi, Assyrian, Turkoman, Armenian)
Languages
major-language sample(s):
كتاب حقائق العالم، المصدر الذي لا يمكن الاستغناء عنه للمعلومات الأساسية (Arabic)
ڕاستییەکانی جیهان، باشترین سەرچاوەیە بۆ زانیارییە بنەڕەتییەکان (Kurdish)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Religions
Muslim 87% (official; includes Sunni 74% and Alawi, Ismaili, and Shia 13%), Christian 10% (includes Orthodox, Uniate, and Nestorian), Druze 3%
Age structure
15-64 years: 62.8% (male 7,475,355/female 7,522,797)
65 years and over: 4.2% (2024 est.) (male 468,730/female 532,271)
Dependency ratios
youth dependency ratio: 51.2 (2025 est.)
elderly dependency ratio: 6.9 (2025 est.)
potential support ratio: 14.5 (2025 est.)
Median age
male: 23.6 years
female: 24.7 years
Population growth rate
1.63% (2025 est.)
Birth rate
21.26 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Death rate
3.97 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Net migration rate
-1.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)
Population distribution
significant population density along the Mediterranean coast; larger concentrations found in the major cities of Damascus, Aleppo (the country's largest city), and Hims (Homs); more than half of the population lives in the coastal plain, the province of Halab, and the Euphrates River valley
Urbanization
rate of urbanization: 5.38% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas - population
2.585 million DAMASCUS (capital), 2.203 million Aleppo, 1.443 million Hims (Homs), 996,000 Hamah (2023)
Sex ratio
0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Maternal mortality ratio
20 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)
Infant mortality rate
male: 16.6 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 13.5 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth
male: 73.4 years
female: 76.4 years
Total fertility rate
2.64 children born/woman (2025 est.)
Gross reproduction rate
1.28 (2025 est.)
Drinking water source
improved: urban
improved: rural
improved: total
unimproved: urban
unimproved: rural
unimproved: total
Health expenditure
7.8% of national budget (2022 est.)
Physician density
1.52 physicians/1,000 population (2021)
Hospital bed density
1.4 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)
Sanitation facility access
improved: urban
improved: rural
improved: total
unimproved: urban
unimproved: rural
unimproved: total
Obesity - adult prevalence rate
27.8% (2016)
Alcohol consumption per capita
beer: 0.02 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
wine: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
spirits: 0.11 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
other alcohols: 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Literacy
male: 97.2% (2021 est.)
female: 91.8% (2021 est.)
Government23
Country name
conventional long form
conventional short form
local long form
local short form
former
etymology
Government type
transitional presidential republic
Capital
geographic coordinates: 33 30 N, 36 18 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
etymology: the city has an ancient, pre-Semitic name of unknown origin
Administrative divisions
Legal system
mixed system of civil and Islamic (sharia) law (for family courts)
Constitution
International law organization participation
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICC
Citizenship
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
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
chief of state
head of government
cabinet
election/appointment process
most recent election date
election results
2021: 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%, other 1.5%
2014: Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD (Ba'th Party) 88.7%, Hassan al-NOURI (independent) 4.3%, Maher HAJJER (independent) 3.2%, other/invalid 3.8%
expected date of next election
Legislative branch
legislature name
legislative structure
number of seats
electoral system
scope of elections
term in office
most recent election date
percentage of women in chamber
expected date of next election
Judicial branch
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
Political parties
Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party
Arab Socialist (Ba'ath) Party – Syrian Regional
Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syrian Regional Branch, Socialist Unionist Democratic Party
Arab Socialist Union of Syria or ASU
Democratic Arab Socialist Union
National Progressive Front or NPF
Socialist Unionist Democratic Party
Socialist Unionist Party
Syrian Communist Party (two branches)
Syrian Social Nationalist Party or SSNP
Unionist Socialist Party
major political organizations:
Kurdish Democratic Union Party or PYD
Kurdish National Council or KNC
Syriac Union Party
Syrian Democratic Council or SDC
Syrian Democratic Party
Syrian Opposition Coalition
de facto governance entities:
Democratic Autonomous Administration of Northeast Syria or DAANES
Syrian Interim Government or SIG
Syrian Salvation Government or SSG
Diplomatic representation in the US
note: operations at the embassy were suspended on 18 March 2014
Diplomatic representation from the US
mailing address: 6110 Damascus Place, Washington DC 20521-6110
email address and website:
[email protected]
https://sy.usembassy.gov/
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, UNOOSA, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WBG, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)
Independence
17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
National holiday
Independence Day (Evacuation Day), 17 April (1946)
Flag
meaning: the design is the same as a previous Syrian national flag (in use 1932-58 and 1961-63), but it is still unclear if the elements will retain the same meanings; the bands formerly represented Syria’s past rulers: white (Umayyad Caliphate), black (Abbasid Caliphate), and green (Rashidun Caliphate); the first star represented Damascus, Aleppo, and Deir ez-Zor, the three administrative subdivisions in Syria in the 1930s; the second star stood for Jabal Druze (the Mountain of the Druze), and the third star for the Alawite Mountains
history: in 2011, opponents to the Asad regime adopted the flag; in 2025, it became the new national flag, replacing the two-star design
National symbol(s)
northern bald ibis
National color(s)
red, white, black, green
National anthem(s)
lyrics/music: Khalil Mardam BEY/Mohammad Salim FLAYFEL and Ahmad Salim FLAYFEL
history: adopted 1936, restored 1961; the country had a different anthem between 1958 and 1961, when Syria was part of the United Arab Republic
National heritage
selected World Heritage Site locales: Ancient City of Damascus; Ancient City of Bosra; Site of Palmyra; Ancient City of Aleppo; Crac des Chevaliers and Qal’at Salah El-Din; Ancient Villages of Northern Syria
Economy27
Economic overview
low-income Middle Eastern economy; prior infrastructure and economy devastated by 11-year civil war; ongoing US sanctions; sporadic trans-migration during conflict; currently being supported by World Bank trust fund; ongoing hyperinflation
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2022: $100.066 billion (2022 est.)
Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2021: $99.338 billion (2021 est.)
Real GDP growth rate
Real GDP growth rate 2022: 0.7% (2022 est.)
Real GDP growth rate 2021: 1.9% (2021 est.)
Real GDP per capita
Real GDP per capita 2022: $4,500 (2022 est.)
Real GDP per capita 2021: $4,600 (2021 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$19.993 billion (2023 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2021: 98.3% (2021 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2020: 114.2% (2020 est.)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin
industry: 12% (2022 est.)
services: 44.9% (2022 est.)
GDP - composition, by end use
government consumption: 2.7% (2022 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 4.5% (2022 est.)
exports of goods and services: 6.8% (2022 est.)
imports of goods and services: -28.8% (2022 est.)
Agricultural products
wheat, barley, milk, sheep milk, tomatoes, olives, potatoes, maize, oranges, grapes (2023)
Industries
petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, cement, oil seeds crushing, automobile assembly
Industrial production growth rate
-13.4% (2022 est.)
Labor force
6.617 million (2024 est.)
Unemployment rate
Unemployment rate 2023: 13.2% (2023 est.)
Unemployment rate 2022: 13.3% (2022 est.)
Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)
male: 27.8% (2024 est.)
female: 47.9% (2024 est.)
Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income
Household income or consumption by percentage share
highest 10%: 21.1% (2022 est.)
Remittances
Remittances 2022: 0% of GDP (2022 est.)
Remittances 2021: 0% of GDP (2021 est.)
Budget
expenditures: $3.211 billion (2017 est.)
Public debt
Exports
Exports 2021: $2.227 billion (2021 est.)
Exports 2020: $1.649 billion (2020 est.)
Exports - partners
Turkey 29%, Saudi Arabia 16%, Lebanon 10%, India 10%, UAE 5% (2023)
Exports - commodities
olive oil, phosphates, spice seeds, cotton, tomatoes (2023)
Imports
Imports 2021: $6.56 billion (2021 est.)
Imports 2020: $3.751 billion (2020 est.)
Imports - partners
Turkey 49%, UAE 11%, China 8%, Egypt 7%, Lebanon 3% (2023)
Imports - commodities
tobacco, plastics, wheat flours, plastic products, seed oils (2023)
Debt - external
Exchange rates
Currency
Exchange rates 2022
Exchange rates 2021
Exchange rates 2020
Exchange rates 2019
Exchange rates 2018
Energy7
Electricity access
electrification - urban areas: 100%
electrification - rural areas: 75%
Electricity
consumption: 15.522 billion kWh (2023 est.)
exports: 358.723 million kWh (2023 est.)
transmission/distribution losses: 4.214 billion kWh (2023 est.)
Electricity generation sources
solar: 0.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
hydroelectricity: 3.8% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
biomass and waste: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
Coal
imports: 15,000 metric tons (2023 est.)
Petroleum
refined petroleum consumption: 102,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)
crude oil estimated reserves: 2.5 billion barrels (2021 est.)
Natural gas
consumption: 2.763 billion cubic meters (2023 est.)
proven reserves: 240.693 billion cubic meters (2021 est.)
Energy consumption per capita
Communications6
Telephones - fixed lines
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 12 (2023 est.)
Telephones - mobile cellular
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 71 (2024 est.)
Broadcast media
state-run TV has 2 networks and 5 satellite channels; roughly two-thirds of homes have a satellite dish with access to foreign TV; 3 state-run radio channels; first private radio station launched in 2005; private radio broadcasters prohibited from transmitting news or political content (2018)
Internet country code
.sy
Internet users
Broadband - fixed subscriptions
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 7 (2023 est.)
Transportation6
Civil aircraft registration country code prefix
YK
Airports
42 (2025)
Heliports
13 (2025)
Railways
standard gauge: 1,801 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 251 km (2014) 1.050-m gauge
Merchant marine
by type: bulk carrier 1, container ship 1, general cargo 8, oil tanker 1, other 13
Ports
total ports
large
medium
small
very small
ports with oil terminals
key ports
Military & Security6
Military and security forces
the interim government authorities in Syria have established a Ministry of Defense and are attempting to unify the dozens of armed factions operating in Syria under a single, state-linked army; it has also established a Ministry of Interior to manage police and other security forces (2025)
Military expenditures
Military Expenditures 2018: 6.7% of GDP (2018 est.)
Military Expenditures 2017: 6.8% of GDP (2017 est.)
Military Expenditures 2016: 6.9% of GDP (2016 est.)
Military Expenditures 2015: 7.2% of GDP (2015 est.)
Military and security service personnel strengths
not available
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
the military forces of Syria are equipped with Russian and Soviet-era armaments (2025)
Military service age and obligation
under Bashar al-ASAD, Syrian men aged 18-38 were required to serve 18-21 months in the military; conscription continued until ASAD's fall when the interim government announced that mandatory conscription to Syria’s armed forces would be abolished and only be reinstated in extreme cases, such as national emergencies relating to war (2025)
Military - note
the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has operated in the Golan between Israel and Syria since 1974 to monitor the ceasefire following the 1973 Arab-Israeli War and supervise the areas of separation between the two countries; UNDOF has about 1,300 personnel (2025)
Transnational Issues2
Refugees and internally displaced persons
IDPs: 7,408,809 (2024 est.)
stateless persons: 160,000 (2024 est.)