Syria Geography, Facts, and History

Syria Geography, Facts, and History Capital and Major Cities Capital: Damascus, population 1.7 million Major Cities: Aleppo, 4.6 million Homs, 1.7 million Hama, 1.5 million Idleb, 1.4 million al-Hasakeh, 1.4 million Dayr al-Zur, 1.1 million Latakia, 1 million Dara, 1 million Government of Syria The Syrian Arab Republic is nominally a republic, but in actuality, it is ruled by an authoritarian regime headed by President Bashar al-Assad and the Arab Socialist Baath Party. In the 2007 elections, Assad received 97.6% of the vote. From 1963 to 2011, Syria was under a State of Emergency that allowed the president extraordinary powers; although the State of Emergency has officially been lifted today, civil liberties remain curtailed. Along with the president, Syria has two vice presidents - one in charge of domestic policy and the other for foreign policy. The 250-seat legislature or Majlis al-Shaab is elected by popular vote for four-year terms. The president serves as the head of the Supreme Judicial Council in Syria. He also appoints the members of the Supreme Constitutional Court, which oversees elections and rules on the constitutionality of laws. There are secular appeals courts and courts of the first instance, as well as Personal Status Courts that use sharia law to rule on marriage and divorce cases. Languages The official language of Syria is Arabic, a Semitic language. Important minority languages include Kurdish, which is from the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo-European; Armenian, which is Indo-European on the Greek branch; Aramaic, another Semitic language; and Circassian, a Caucasian language. In addition to these mother tongues, many Syrians can speak French. France was the League of Nations mandatory power in Syria after World War I. English is also growing in popularity as a language of international discourse in Syria. Population The population of Syria is approximately 22.5 million (2012 estimate). Of those, about 90% are Arab, 9% are Kurds, and the remaining 1% is made up of small numbers of Armenians, Circassians, and Turkmens. In addition, there are about 18,000 Israeli settlers occupying the Golan Heights. Syrias population is growing quickly, with annual growth of 2.4%. The average life expectancy for men is 69.8 years, and for women 72.7 years. Religion in Syria Syria has a complex array of religions represented among its citizens. Approximately 74% of Syrians are Sunni Muslims. Another 12% (including the al-Assad family) are Alawis or Alawites, an off-shoot of the Twelver school within Shiism. Approximately 10% are Christians, mostly of the Antiochian Orthodox Church, but also including Armenian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, and Assyrian Church of the East members. Approximately three percent of Syrians are Druze; this unique faith combines Shia beliefs of the Ismaili school with Greek philosophy and Gnosticism. Small numbers of Syrians are Jewish or Yazidist. Yazidism is a syncretic belief system mostly among ethnic Kurds that combines Zoroastrianism and Islamic Sufism. Geography Syria is situated on the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. It has a total area of 185,180 square kilometers (71,500 square miles), divided into fourteen administrative units. Syria shares land borders with Turkey to the north and west, Iraq to the east, Jordan and Israel to the south, and Lebanon to the southwest. Although much of Syria is desert, 28% of its land is arable, thanks in large part to irrigation water from the Euphrates River. The highest point in Syria is Mount Hermon, at 2,814 meters (9,232 feet). The lowest point is near the Sea of Galilee, at -200 meters from the sea (-656 feet). Climate Syrias climate is quite varied, with a relatively humid coast and a desert interior separated by a semiarid zone in between. While the coast averages only about 27 °C (81 °F) in August, temperatures in the desert regularly surpass 45 °C (113 °F). Similarly, rainfall along the Mediterranean averages 750 to 1,000 mm per year (30 to 40 inches), while the desert sees just 250 millimeters (10 inches). Economy Although it has risen into the middle ranks of nations in terms of the economy over recent decades, Syria faces economic uncertainty due to political unrest and international sanctions. It depends on agriculture and oil exports, both of which are declining. Corruption is also an issue.on agriculture and oil exports, both of which are declining. Corruption is also an issue. Approximately 17% of the Syrian workforce is in the agriculture sector, while 16% are in industry and 67% in services. The unemployment rate is 8.1%, and 11.9% of the population live below the poverty line. Syrias per capita GDP in 2011 was about $5,100 US. As of June 2012, 1 US dollar 63.75 Syrian pounds. History of Syria Syria was one of the early centers of Neolithic human culture 12,000 years ago. Important advances in agriculture, such as the development of domestic grain varieties and the taming of livestock, likely took place in the Levant, which includes Syria. By about 3000 BCE, the Syrian city-state of Ebla was the capital of a major Semitic empire that had trade relations with Sumer, Akkad and even Egypt. The invasions of the Sea Peoples interrupted this civilization during the second millennium BCE, however. Syria came under Persian control during the Achaemenid period (550-336 BCE)  and then fell to the Macedonians under Alexander the Great following Persias defeat in the Battle of Gaugamela (331 BCE). Over the next three centuries, Syria would be ruled by the Seleucids, the Romans, the Byzantines, and the Armenians. Finally, in 64 BCE it became a Roman province  and remained so until 636 CE. Syria rose to prominence after the founding of the Muslim Umayyad Empire in 636 CE, which named Damascus as its capital. When the Abbasid Empire displaced the Umayyads in 750, however, the new rulers moved the capital of the Islamic world to Baghdad. The Byzantine (Eastern Roman) sought to regain control over Syria, repeatedly attacking, capturing and then losing major Syrian cities between 960 and 1020 CE. Byzantine aspirations faded when the Seljuk Turks invaded Byzantium in the late 11th century, also conquering parts of Syria itself. At the same time, however, Christian Crusaders from Europe began establishing the small Crusader States along the Syrian coast. They were opposed by anti-Crusader warriors including, among others, the famous Saladin, who was the sultan of Syria and Egypt. Both the Muslims and the Crusaders in Syria faced an existential threat in the 13th century, in the form of the rapidly expanding Mongol Empire. The Ilkhanate Mongols invaded Syria  and met fierce resistance from opponents including the Egyptian Mamluk army, which defeated the Mongols soundly at the Battle of Ayn Jalut in 1260. The foes fought on until 1322, but in the meanwhile, the leaders of the Mongol army in the Middle East converted to Islam and became assimilated into the culture of the area. The Ilkhanate faded out of existence in the mid 14th century, and the Mamluk Sultanate solidified its grip on the area. In 1516, a new power took control of Syria. The Ottoman Empire, based in Turkey, would rule Syria and the rest of the Levant until 1918. Syria became a relatively little-regarded backwater in the vast Ottoman territories. The Ottoman sultan made the mistake of aligning himself with the Germans and Austro-Hungarians in World War I; when they lost the war, the Ottoman Empire, also known as the Sick Man of Europe, fell apart. Under supervision by the new League of Nations, Britain and France divided the former Ottoman lands in the Middle East between themselves. Syria and Lebanon became French mandates. An anti-colonial revolt in 1925 by a unified Syrian populace frightened the French so much that they resorted to brutal tactics to put down the rebellion. In a preview of French policies a few decades later in Vietnam, the French army drove tanks through the cities of Syria, knocking down houses, summarily executing suspected rebels, and even bombing civilians from the air. During World War II, the Free French government declared Syria independent from Vichy France, while reserving the right to veto any bill passed by the new Syrian legislature. The last French troops left Syria in April of 1946, and the country gained a measure of true independence. Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, Syrian politics were bloody and chaotic. In 1963, a coup put the Baath Party into power; it remains in control to this day. Hafez al-Assad took over both the party and the country in a 1970 coup  and the presidency passed to his son Bashar al-Assad following Hafez al-Assads death in 2000. The younger Assad was seen as a potential reformer and modernizer, but his regime has proved corrupt and ruthless. Beginning in the spring of 2011, a Syrian Uprising sought to overthrow Assad as part of the Arab Spring movement.

Global Operations Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Global Operations Management - Research Paper Example 334). Other issues are clearly disclosed by Fisher (2003) as: â€Å"whether globalization results in unfair labor practices in developing countries; whether globalization damages the environment; whether multinational corporations have become too powerful to the detriment of developing country citizens and governments; whether globalization gives rise to tax competition that undermines the capacity of governments to raise revenues and thus to provide necessary services to their citizens; whether intellectual property protection is damaging the health of developing country citizens† (p. 7). Political issues include government regulations imposed on foreign organizations including policies on deregulation, risks faced from local violent groups and insurgents, level of organized crime and terrorist activities in the host foreign country. 2. Explain what cultural barriers and diversity issues are commonly encountered by international/multinational (MNC) and global organizations. C ultural barriers and diversity issues are commonly encountered by international/multinational and global organizations for the reasons that each country has developed its own set of values, traditions, cultural norms and beliefs that could be significantly different from the home country. For instance, Japan and Germany have different cultural mindsets and practices that have been ingrained in the general population since the beginning of time. Operating in Japan or Germany should therefore necessitate orienting oneself on cultural disparities and business practices to ensure that expanding to these countries would not compromise, intimidate, impose oneself and run contrary to the people’s beliefs and value system. As emphasized by Firoz, Maghrabi and Kim (2002), â€Å"theoretical reasoning and statistical analysis revealed the four main dimensions on which country cultures differ. They were labeled Power Distance, Uncertainty Avoidance, Individualism, and Masculinity† (p. 32). 3. Why has diversity become such an important topic in the international arena? Diversity has become such an important topic in the international arena because in order for global organizations to effectively operate in a foreign country, the barriers to effective operation must be addressed: language and communication barriers, business ethics, value systems (religion), business practices, and external factors that impinge on the expanding organization. Due to diversity in culture, there could be significant differences in cultural norms, values and traditions that could not simply be imposed on the host country. 4. What can occur when issues related to multiculturalism and diversity are ignored in an international company? If these are not effectively and appropriately addressed, the risk of failure is increased. There would be eminent problems in communication, in expecting that policies and procedures would simply be adhered to or followed, and in imposing one’s normal way of doing things on another culture that has been accustomed to a different way of doing business or a way of life. 5. Describe at least 2 political and 2 economic issues that may arise during global expansion and proposed methods of addressing them. The political issues that may arise during global expansion are: (1) barriers to entry and (2) political upheaval.

Buddhist teachings Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Buddhist teachings - Essay Example ing; 2) the desire as the reason for suffering; 3) nirvana as the cessation of suffering; and 4) the Eightfold Path which leads to the cessation of suffering. The Noble Eightfold Path was indicated by Buddha. It consists of eight rules and leads to the cessation of suffering and liberation from samsara. According to the median path it lies between the adherence to world pleasures and asceticism. 2. Theravada is the earliest school of Buddhism, which was formed by Buddha followers immediately after his death. They were trying to attain personal enlightenment by literal adherence to Gautama’s lifestyle and meditation practice. The knowledge of Theravada is recorded in canonical text Tipitaka and explained in large commentary literature. In the middle of the 5th century Theravadins divided into three groups, and in 100 years the most orthodox one established themselves in Sri Lanka. Mahayana emerged as an opposition to Theravada during first centuries B.C. and flourished in the beginning of the first millennium. The ideal of Mahayana is Bodhisattva – a person who is striving to enlightenment, but refuses nirvana for the liberation of all other beings from suffering. Mahayana argued that nirvana is available for everyone, both a layman and a monk, and everyone on his path to enlightenment may rely on bodhisattvas’ help. Vajrayana is Tantric Buddhist School which was originated in 3rd – 7th century in India and later was spread to Tibet. It embodies the idea of relative and absolute unity to the individual lives, claiming that each person has indestructible nature of the Buddha. The aim of Vajrayana is to bring mind into non-dual state, when each event expresses its unlimited potential. Its methods are designed for those who can see the reflection of own mind in his teacher, thus to adopt teacher’s non-personal qualities through the dedication and self-identification (Keown,

Neanderthals and Human Evolution Essay Example for Free

Neanderthals and Human Evolution Essay The Neanderthals are an extinct species in the homo genus. They lived during the Pleistocene age. The Neanderthals are believed to have lived in most of Eurasia from 120,000 years ago to about 30,000 years ago. They were a more advanced pre-modern variation of the homo genus. The reason they are viewed as more advanced than other Pre-modern hominids is because they made tools, buried their dead they also lived to around forty years of age. This is quite long compared to their contemporaries. Their tools and artifacts characterize what is known as the Mousterian. To be precise the Neanderthals created flake tools. Tools made by the breakage of flakes of stone off of a larger rock. One example of these are the hand axes and smaller tools with a sharp cutting edge. They were large game hunters who were specially adapted to thrive in the frigid conditions of the middle Pleistocene in Europe. They seem to have originally evolved in Europe at around 250,000 years ago, but latter expanded into southwest Asia. The Neanderthals appear to have been the first hominids who deliberately buried their dead. The graves sometimes included flowers, tools, and food. This could possibly signify a belief in an afterlife. There is also some evidence that they would as a group care for injured or deficient members of their community showing that they had likely had the capacity for compassion. The first Neanderthal remains were discovered in the Neander valley in Germany. The remains show that the Neanderthals were about five feet tall with a stocky and powerful build. While they did have prominent brow ridges and an occipital bun their brain size is comparable to modern day human size. Their population went in to decline and eventually became extinct when the Homo sapiens began to move in to their territory. There are a couple theories on what occurred at this point. One theory is that Homo sapiens either killed off the Neanderthals or took over so much of the land that the Neanderthals couldn’t survive on what was left to them.

Movie Essays - Jane Campions Film of Henry Jamess The Portrait of a L

Jane Campion's Film Version of Henry James's The Portrait of a Lady Jane Campion's film version of Henry James's novel, The Portrait of a Lady, offers the viewer a sexually charged narrative of a young naive American girl in Victorian era Europe. James's novel focuses on "what an exciting inward life may do for the person leading it even while it [a person's life] remains perfectly normal" (James 54). James could not or would not place into his narrative the sexual thoughts, suggestions, and actions of his characters beyond the first flush of the experience. For example, when Caspar takes Isabel into his arms and kisses her near the close of the novel, Isabel does express sexuality, but that sexuality is short lived: He glared at her a moment through the dusk, and the next instant she felt his arms about her and his lips on her lips. His kiss was like white lightening, a flash that spread, and spread again, and stayed; and it was extraordinary as if, while she took it, she felt each thing in his hard manhood that had least pleased her, each aggressive fact of his face, his figure, his presence, justified of its intense identity and made one with this act of possession. (James 636) This passage, like every other passage in the novel, that deals with male-female touching or kissing ends as it is read. James does not allow his characters to recall their sexuality. Dorothea Krook points out: "To speak of James's "treatment" of the sexual theme in The Portrait of a Lady would be virtually meaningless, but for the striking episode between Isabel and Caspar Goodwood in the very last pages of the book" (Krook 101). The sexual theme in Campion's film version of James's novel is not meaningless. Campion not only allow... .... 1881. New York: Penguin, 1986. Jones, Laura, adapt. The Portrait of a Lady. By Henry James. Dir. Jane Campion. Videocassette. PolyGram, 1997. Nadel, Alan. "The Search for Cinematic Identity and a Good Man: Jane Campion's Appropriation of James's Portrait." Henry James Review 18.2 (1997): 180-183. Volpe, Edmond L. "James's Theory of Sex." Twentieth Century Interpretations of The Portrait of a Lady: A Collection of Critical Essays. Ed. Peter Buitenhuis. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1968. Walton, Priscilla L. "Jane and James Go to the Movies: Post Colonial Portraits of a Lady." Henry James Review 18.2 (1997): 187-190. Wexman, Virginia Wright. "The Portrait of a Body." Henry James Review 18.2 (1997): 184-186. White, Robert. "Love, Marriage, and Divorce: The Matter of Sexuality in The Portrait of a Lady." Henry James Review 7.2-3 (1986): 59-71.

Electronic gadgets Essay

Technology has become a very important part of our lives nowadays. During the past few years, technology has evolved in many ways and is probably without a doubt better than ever before. People are always trying to find something new that will improve our lives dramatically. Some of the creations that have really changed our lives are the computer, telephone, internet and electronic mail, television, cell phone and voice mail. Everything has a positive and a negative effect on our lives and so does technology. Technology may be very helpful but it can sometimes be very harmful. In our modern society, people can’t see themselves without computers. see more:life without modern gadgets article Computers have evolved so much during the past years. They used to be bulky, expensive and not very reliable machine but nowadays there are fast, small and affordable and nearly every family has a computer. With computers you can browse over the internet and look for information about a subject instead of having to do read books at the library or read the newspaper. This image was selected as a picture of the week o†¦ Nowadays mostly everything is available on the internet. You can even do your Christmas shopping over the internet instead of having to spend a long time waiting at the malls. Electronic mails can be sent over a network and it’s much faster and takes up less time than to have to write a letter and then send it and the person would have to wait a day or more to get your letter. Cell phones are also very useful gadgets as people can reach you wherever you are. In case of emergency people can contact you even if you’re not at home. When you have a computer you can just store your files on your hard drive and it can be retrieved at any time. It’s also much easier†¦

The Second Anglo-Afghan War in the Late 1870s

The Second Anglo-Afghan War began when Britain invaded Afghanistan for reasons that had less to do with the Afghans than with the Russian Empire. The feeling in London in the 1870s was that the competing empires of Britain and Russia were bound to clash in central Asia at some point, with Russias eventual goal being the invasion and seizure of Britains prize possession, India. British strategy, which would eventually become known as The Great Game, was focused on keeping Russian influence out of Afghanistan, which could become Russias stepping-stone to India. In 1878 the popular British magazine Punch summed up the situation in a cartoon depicting a wary Sher Ali, the Amir of Afghanistan, caught between a growling British lion and a hungry Russian bear. When the Russians sent an envoy to Afghanistan in July 1878, the British were greatly alarmed. They demanded that the Afghan government of Sher Ali accept a British diplomatic mission. The Afghans refused, and the British government decided to launch a war in late 1878. The British had actually invaded Afghanistan from India decades earlier. The First Anglo-Afghan War ended disastrously with an entire British army making a horrendous winter retreat from Kabul in 1842. The British Invade Afghanistan in 1878 British troops from India invaded Afghanistan in late 1878, with a total of about 40,000 troops advancing in three separate columns. The British Army met resistance from Afghan tribesmen but was able to control a large part of Afghanistan by the spring of 1879. With a military victory in hand, the British arranged for a treaty with the Afghan government. The countrys strong leader, Sher Ali, had died, and his son Yakub Khan, had ascended to power. The British envoy Major Louis Cavagnari, who had grown up in British-controlled India as the son of an Italian father and an Irish mother, met Yakub Khan at Gandmak. The resulting Treaty of Gandamak marked the end of the war, and it seemed that Britain had accomplished its objectives. The Afghan leader agreed to accept a permanent British mission which would essentially conduct Afghanistans foreign policy. Britain also agreed to defend Afghanistan against any foreign aggression, meaning any potential Russian invasion. The problem was that it had all been too easy. The British did not realize that Yakub Khan was a weak leader who had agreed to conditions which his countrymen would rebel against. A Massacre Begins A New Phase of the Second Anglo-Afghan War Cavagnari was something of a hero for negotiating the treaty and was knighted for his efforts. He was appointed as envoy at the court of Yakub Khan, and in the summer of 1879 he set up a residency in Kabul which was protected by a small contingent of British cavalry. Relations with the Afghans began to sour, and in September a rebellion against the British broke out in Kabul. Cavagnaris residence was attacked, and Cavagnari was shot and killed, along with nearly all of the British soldiers tasked to protect him. The Afghan leader, Yakub Khan, tried to restore order and was nearly killed himself. The British Army Crushes the Uprising in Kabul A British column commanded by General Frederick Roberts, one of the most capable British officers of the period, marched on Kabul to take revenge. After fighting his way to the capital in October 1879, Roberts had a number of Afghans captured and hanged. There were also reports of what amounted to a reign of terror in Kabul as the British avenged the massacre of Cavagnari and his men. General Roberts announced that Yakub Khan had abdicated and appointed himself military governor of Afghanistan. With his force of approximately 6,500 men, he settled in for the winter. In early December 1879, Roberts and his men had to fight a substantial battle against attacking Afghans. The British moved out of the city of Kabul and took up a fortified position nearby. Roberts wanted to avoid a repeat of the disaster of the British retreat from Kabul in 1842 and remained to fight another battle on December 23, 1879. The British held their position throughout the winter. General Roberts Makes a Legendary March on Kandahar In the spring of 1880, a British column commanded by General Stewart marched to Kabul and relieved General Roberts. But when news came that British troops at Kandahar were surrounded and facing grave danger, General Roberts embarked on what would become a legendary military feat. With 10,000 men, Roberts marched from Kabul to Kandahar, a distance of about 300 miles, in just 20 days. The British march was generally unopposed, but being able to move that many troops 15 miles a day in the brutal heat of Afghanistans summer was a remarkable example of discipline, organization, and leadership. When General Roberts reached Kandahar he linked up with the British garrison of the city, and the combined British forces inflicted a defeat on the Afghan forces. This marked the end of hostilities in the Second Anglo-Afghan War. The Diplomatic Outcome of the Second Anglo-Afghan War As the fighting was winding down, a major player in Afghan politics, Abdur Rahman, the nephew of Sher Ali, who had been Afghanistans ruler before the war, returned to the country from exile. The British recognized that he might be the strong leader they preferred in the country. As General Roberts was making his march to Kandahar, General Stewart, in Kabul, installed Abdur Rahman as the new leader, the Amir, of Afghanistan. Amir Abdul Rahman gave the British what they wanted, including assurances that Afghanistan would not have relations with any nation except Britain. In return, Britain agreed not to meddle in Afghanistans internal affairs. For the final decades of the 19th century, Abdul Rahman held the throne in Afghanistan, becoming known as the Iron Amir. He died in 1901. The Russian invasion of Afghanistan which the British feared in the late 1870s never materialized, and Britains hold on India remained secure.