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On Uprising in Syria (one)
-DR. ABDUL RUFF
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1. About Syria and Economy
Today, Islam and Muslims are under attack from their sworn enemies within and outside pretending to be extra “democrats” and seeking to effect regime changes to recreate the world full of puppet regimes to subserve US economic, energy, financial and security interests.
There is a general global impression created by the anti-Islamic fascist media assisting the NATO forces to kill Muslims that Syria in Mideast is a Sii'a dominated Muslim nation, primarily because Iran is a close ally of Syria for which the US-Israel terror twins target Syria along with Iran. But facts reveal that Syria is a Sunni dominated Islamic nation fighting Israeli domination in the region, propelled by the dictatorial USA and fanatic Europe. Similarly, Bahrain is a Shiite dominated Muslim nation ruled by a Sunni leader. Saudi Arabia plays destructive politics in dividing Sunni-Sii'a populations and nations.
Syria is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest. In the Islamic era, its capital city, Damascus, the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, was the seat of the Umayyad Caliphate and a provincial capital of the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
Syria has a population of approximately 22.2 million people, and Syrian Government figures place the population growth rate at 2.45%, with 75% of the population under the age of 35 and more than 40% under the age of 15. The population of Syria is 74% Sunni Muslim, with a 12% Shia and Alawite Muslim population- the Shia sect to which Assad belongs, 10% Christian and 3% Druze. Combined, some 86% of the Syrian population is Muslim, which largely includes Arabs and significant minorities of Kurds and Circassians, while some 10% are Christians, which mainly includes ethnic Assyrians, but also Arab Christians and Armenians.
The modern Syrian state was established as a French mandate and attained independence in April 1946, as a parliamentary republic. The post-independence period was tumultuous, and a large number of military coups and coup attempts shook the country in the period 1949–1970. Syria was under Emergency Law from 1962–2011, effectively suspending most constitutional protections for citizens and its system of government is considered non-democratic.
Bashar al-Assad is the current president, and was preceded by his father Hafez al-Assad, who was in office since 1971. Syria is currently facing massive protests as part of the Arab Spring. In 1948, Syria was involved in the Arab-Israeli War, aligning with the other local Arab nations who were attempting to prevent the establishment of Israel. During the Suez Crisis of 1956, after the invasion of the Sinai Peninsula by Israeli troops, and the intervention of British and French troops, martial law was declared in Syria. In November 1956, Syria signed a pact with the Soviet Union, providing a foothold for Communist influence within the government in exchange for planes, tanks, and other military equipment being sent to Syria.
With this increase in the strength of Syrian military technology worried Turkey, as it seemed feasible that Syria might attempt to retake Ýskenderun, a matter of dispute between Syria and Turkey. On the other hand, Syria and the Soviet Union accused Turkey of massing its troops at the Syrian border. During this standoff, Communists gained more control over the Syrian government and military. Only heated debates in the United Nations (of which Syria was an original member) lessened the threat of war. On 1 February 1958, Syrian President Shukri al-Quwatli and Nasser announced the merging of the two countries, creating the United Arab Republic, and all Syrian political parties, as well as the Communists therein, ceased overt activities. The union was not a success, however. Following a military overthrow led by Abd al-Karim al-Nahlawi on 28 September 1961, Syria seceded, reestablishing itself as the Syrian Arab Republic. Conflict over the cultivation of disputed lands sparked into April 7 prewar aerial clashes between Israel and Syria. The Israeli defense minister Moshe Dayan said in a 1976 interview that Israel provoked more than 80% of the clashes with Syria.
After Israel launched a preemptive strike on Egypt to begin the June 1967 war, Syria joined the battle against Israel as well. In the final days of the war, after having captured the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip from Egypt, as well as the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem from Jordan, Israel turned its attention to Syria, capturing the entire Golan Heights in less than 48 hours.
The two main pillars of the Syrian economy have been agriculture and oil. Syria has produced heavy-grade oil from fields located in the northeast since the late 1960s. In the early 1980s, light-grade, low-sulphur oil was discovered near Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria. Oil still accounts for a majority of the country's export income. Syria also produces 22 million cubic meters of gas per day, with estimated reserves around 8.5 trillion cubic feet (240 km3). While the government has begun to work with international energy companies in the hopes of eventually becoming a gas exporter, all gas currently produced is consumed domestically. Some basic commodities, such as diesel, continue to be heavily subsidized, and social services are provided for nominal charges.
Government officials acknowledge that the economy is not growing at a pace sufficient to create enough new jobs annually to match population growth. The UNDP announced in 2005 that 30% of the Syrian population lives in poverty and 11.4% live below the subsistence level. Syria withdrew from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1951 because of Israel's accession. It is not a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), although it submitted a request to begin the accession process in 2001. Syria is developing regional free trade agreements. As of 1 January 2005, the Greater Arab Free Trade Area (GAFTA) came into effect and customs duties were eliminated between Syria and all other members of GAFTA. Syria has signed a free trade agreement with Turkey, which came into force in January 2007, and initialed an Association Agreement with the European Union, which has yet to be signed.
Syria's main exports include crude oil, refined products, raw cotton, clothing, fruits, and grains. The bulk of Syrian imports are raw materials essential for industry, vehicles, agricultural equipment, and heavy machinery. Earnings from oil exports as well as remittances from Syrian workers are the government's most important sources of foreign exchange. As a result of an inefficient and corrupt centrally planned economy, Syria has low rates of investment, and low levels of industrial and agricultural productivity. The government hopes to attract new investment in the tourism, natural gas, and service sectors to diversify its economy and reduce its dependence on oil and agriculture. The government has begun to institute economic reforms aimed at liberalizing most markets.
unlike Libya that has plenty of oil resources, Syria does not have many oil fields to invite the CIA-Pentagon-NATO attention to invade it. However, Syria is hated by US-Israeli gang.
(To continue...)
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