ARE YOU SYRIA?!?!

By Maryfay JacksonPeriod 7

Syria is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea and Lebanon on the West, Israel and Jordan on the South, Iraq on the East, and Turkey on the North.

Arabic is the official language spoken and is spoken by 89% of the population, 6% speak Kurdish, 3% speak Armenian, and 2% speak a different language.

Their capital is Damascus. The 1997 estimate of the population of Syria

was 16,137,899. The Majority of Syria is Sunni Muslim with 70%

of the population. 12% are Christians, and 18% is another minority, for example Jews and Druzes.

The unit of currency is the Syrian Pound divided into 100 piasters.

(Leaders) القادة The president that the revolutionaries in

Syria are trying to overthrow is Bashar Al-Assad.

He is also the Regional Secretary of the Ba’ath Party.

He was elected in 2000 and 2007 and ran unopposed each time.

(Backround) خلفية Bashar al-Assad’s father, Hafez al-Assad, ruled

for 30 years before his son took over. He suppressed an uprising in 1982 in Hama. At

least 10,000 people died, most of them innocent civilians.

March 2011 is when the “Arab Spring” rebellions began throughout the Middle East.

The protests began in Syria and rose to an anti-government uprising resulting in at least 100 deaths.

(Similarities) التشابه Just like the British on America, the al-

Assad ruled with force. Many revolutionaries tried and uprising but it was crushed by the government.

Many people were fed up with the way that the government was treating them and they reacted by protests and riots.

الخالفات(Differences)

Unlike the American Revolution, the Syrian uprising was between the government and the citizens was in the same country.

In the Syrian uprising, when the government resigned, Bashar al-Assad stayed as president.

The Syrian forces and soldiers ended up being split and began to fight against another.

ذاهبون؟ هم اين(Where are they going?)

I think that the way the uprising is going that it could go either way. With some military forces on their sides they have a good chance.

Syrian: Location, Population, Religion, Membership, Currency. Arabic German Consulting. 1998-1999. October 21, 2011. http://www.arab.de/arabinfo/syria.htm

Bashar al-Assad. Wikipedia. October 25. October 26, 2011. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bashar_al-Assad

“The History Guy”. The Syrian Uprising Timeline. March 2011. October 26, 2011. http://www.historyguy.com/syrian_uprising_2011.htm