Syria

After the ottoman empire broke up during World War I, Syria came under the domination of France, following a League of Nations mandate, until independence in 1946. A series of military coups subsequently occurred, followed in 1956 by the union of Syria and Egypt into the United Arab Republic. Three years later, Syria broke away and reformed the Syrian Arab Republic. The ensuing period of political stability was marred by the loss of the Golan Heights to Israel during the Arab-Israeli War and by dissension with Lebanon over Syria's purported peacekeeping presence in Lebanon between 1976 and 2005.

An estimated 18,448,752 people make their home in Syria, including approximately 40,000 who live in the contested areas of the Golan Heights. With a per capita income of $3,500, Syria is ranked 154th of 232 countries in world incomes. Approximately one-fifth of the population live below the national poverty line, and a similar number of Syrians are unemployed. The Syrian standard of living is also negatively affected by high infant mortality (29.53 deaths per 1,000 live births) and fertility (3.5 children per female) rates and a low female literacy rate (64 percent). The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Reports rank Syria 106th in the world in overall quality-oflife issues.

In addition to a coastline of 120 miles (193 kilometers) along the Mediterranean Sea, Syria lays claim to 436 square miles (1,130 square kilometers) of inland water, which includes 500 square miles (1,295 square kilometers) of water located inside contested territory occupied by Israel. With a terrain composed of semiarid and desert plateaus interspersed with narrow coastal plains that give way to mountains in the west, Syria's climate is dictated by the desert. Between June and August, the weather is dry and sunny, and mild, rainy winters mark the period between December and February. In the area around the capital city of Damascus, snow and sleet may occur during winters. Dust and sand storms are frequent. Rich natural resources include petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, and hydropower. Over a fourth of the 71,498 square miles (185,180 square kilometers) of land area is arable, but the salinity of the soil is destructive to crops. Barely half the population of Syria live in urban areas.

Detrimental agricultural practices have led to overgrazing and soil erosion. Desertification and land degradation are consequences of both human and climatic activities. Extensive water pollution in Syria has resulted from oil spills and from the practice of dumping raw sewage and refinery wastes directly into water sources. Only 2.5 percent of Syrian land area is forested, chiefly in the southeast. The rate of deforestation has been accelerated by farming, livestock grazing, and the indiscriminate use of forest lumber for fuel and development. Of 63 endemic mammal species, four are endangered, as are 8 of 145 endemic bird species.

In 2006, a study conducted by scientists at Yale University ranked Syria 97th of 132 nations in environmental performance, well below the relevant [Page 1698]income and geographic groups. The lowest scores were assigned in the categories of biodiversity and habitat, sustainable energy, and air quality. More than one-fifth of the population lack sustained access to safe drinking water, and that access declines to 64 percent in rural areas. Around 23 percent of Syrians do not have access to improved sanitation. These factors contribute to the spread of diseases that result from contact with contaminated food and water.

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