Syria

Official name:

Syrian Arab Republic

Name in local language:

الجمهوريّة العربيّة السّوريّة transliterated as al-Jumhuriyatu al-'arabiya as-suriya

Form of government:

Republic

Political system:

Presidential

Founding date/ Date of independence: April 7, 1946
Date of constitution/reform: Constitution adopted on March 13, 1973. Last amendment February 27, 2012
Form of state: Unitary
Administrative divisions: Syria is divided into 14 governorates (muhafazat). Governors are appointed by the Ministry of the Interior
Official language(s): Arabic
Other spoken languages: Kurdish, Armenian, Syriac and Turkic
Official religion: No Official religion, but the constitution does require the President to be a Muslim
Minorities: Ethnic Minorities: Kurds and Armenians; Religious Minorities: Druze, Christians, Jews and Alawites (minority in terms of population, but Alawites control the highest institutional offices)
Dominant actor(s): Military elite and Presidential clan
Elected institutions of government: Presidency, People’s Assembly (Majlis al-Shaab), municipal councils.
Non-elected institutions of government: Government and provincial governments.
Party system: The new constitution, promulgated on February 26, 2012, allows several parties to run for election to the People’s Assembly. But freedom of political parties does not exist.

Current authorities

Head of state: Bashar al Assad, since 17 July 2000
Head of government: Imad Khamis, since 9 August 2016, replacing Wael al-Halqi
Minister of Foreign Affairs: Walid al-Moualem, since 14 April 2011
Minister of Interior: Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar, since 14 April 2011
Head(s) of Legislative Branch: Mohammad Jihad al-Laham, since 24 May 2012
Composition legislative branch:
Head of the Judiciary: Najm Hamad al-Ahmad (Minister of Justice), Adnan Zureiq (President Supreme Constitutional Court)
Schematic representation of the political system: Link to PDF