Syria
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| Syrian Arab Republic | |
|---|---|
| National anthem | Homet el Diyar |
| Capital (and largest city) | Damascus |
| Official language | Arabic |
| Government type | Single-party repulbic |
| President | Bashir al-Assad |
| Area | 185,180 km² 71,479 mi² |
| Population | 18,600,000 (2005 estimate) |
| HDI | Template:Increase 0.724 (medium) (109th) (2007) |
| Currency | Syrian Pound (SYP) |
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) Summer:EEST (UTC+3) |
| Country codes | Internet TLD : .sy Calling code : +963 |
Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in the Middle East. It borders Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, and Jordan to the southeast. Syria has a disputed border with Israel to the southwest, and part of it, the Golan Heights, is occupied by that country.
Syria has been an important center for millenia. Its capital, Damascus, may be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, and it was an important center of the ancient and medieval Islamic worlds, serving as the capital of the Arab Umayyad dynasty. In modern times, Syria remains an important and influential Arab country.