Dara`a Governorate مُحافظة درعا
—  Governorate  —
Map of Syria with Dar'a highlighted Map of Syria with Dar'a highlighted
Coordinates (Daraa): 32°54′N 36°12′E / 32.9°N 36.2°E / 32.9; 36.2Coordinates: 32°54′N 36°12′E / 32.9°N 36.2°E / 32.9; 36.2
Country	Syria
Capital	Daraa
Manatiq (Districts)	3
Area
• Total	3,730 km2 (1,440 sq mi)
Population (2010)
• Total	998,000
• Density	270/km2 (690/sq mi)
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
ISO 3166 code	SY-DR
Main language(s)	Arabic

Dara`a Governorate (Arabic: مُحافظة درعا‎ / ALA-LC: Muḥāfaẓat Dara‘ā) is one of the fourteen Governorates of Syria. It is situated in the south-west of the country and covers an area of 3,730 km². It is bordered by Jordan to the south, Quneitra Governorate to the west, Rif Dimashq Governorate to the north and Al-Suwayda Governorate to the east. The governorate has a population of 998,000 (2010 census office estimate). The capital is the city of Daraa.

Districts[link]

Al-Sanamayn Izra' Daraa

The governorate is divided into 3 districts (manatiq):

• Al-Sanamayn
• Dar'a
• Izra'

These are further divided into ? sub-districts (nawahi).

External links[link]

• Official Site of Daraa Governorate (Arabic)
• edaraa The First Complete website for daraa news and services

		Rif Dimashq Governorate
	Quneitra Governorate		As-Suwayda Governorate
		Daraa Governorate    East
	Irbid Governorate	Mafraq Governorate

v t e Governorates of Syria Al-Hasakah Aleppo Damascus Daraa Deir ez-Zor Hama Homs Idlib Latakia Quneitra Ar-Raqqah Rif Dimashq As-Suwayda Tartus

v t e Daraa Governorate Cities Daraa Izra' Nawa al-Sanamayn Daraa Governorate Towns and villages Bosra Burraq Busra al-Harir Da'el Deir al-Adas al-Harra Hirak Ibta' Inkhil Jassem Kafr Shams al-Karak Khabab Khirbet al-Ghazaleh al-Musayfrah Naseeb Sa'sa Saham al-Jawlan Saida Sheikh Maskin Sheikh Sa'ad Tafas Tubna Zimrin

This Syria location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Daraa درعا
Daraa
Coordinates: 32°37′N 36°6′E / 32.617°N 36.1°E / 32.617; 36.1
Country	Syria
Governorate	Daraa Governorate
District	Daraa District
Government
• Governor	Mohammad Khaled al-Hannus[1]
Elevation	435 m (1,427 ft)
Population (2004 census)[2]
• City	97,969
• Metro	146,481
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Area code(s)	15

Daraa (Arabic: درعا‎, Levantine Arabic: [ˈdarʕa]), also Darʿā, Dara’a, Deraa, Dera, and Derʿā ("fortress", compare Dura-Europos), is a city in southwestern Syria, near the border with Jordan, with a population of 97,969 as of the 2004 census.^[2][3] It is the capital of Daraa Governorate, historically part of the ancient Hauran region. The city is located about 100 kilometres (62 mi) south of Damascus on the Damascus-Amman highway, and is used as a stopping station for travelers.

Daraa is an ancient city dating back to the Canaanites. It was mentioned in Egyptian hieroglyphic tablets at the time of the Pharaoh Thutmose III between 1490 and 1436 BC. It was known in those days as the city of Atharaa, and was later mentioned in the Old Testament as Edrei in the Kingdom of Bashan. Located in the city itself are a few ruins including caves and ancient dwellings, a Roman amphitheater, and the old Oumari Mosque which is of some architectural significance, dating back to the Umayyad and Ayyubid eras.

Daraa has recently suffered from reduced water supply in the region. Thousands of people protested in the city as part of the 2011 Syrian protests.^[4]

Climate[link]

2011 uprising[link]

The city of Daraa was the starting point of the 2011 uprising against the regime lead by Bashar Al-Assad. It all started when 15 children from the same family (Al-Abazeed) were arrested in early March 2011 for writing an anti regime slogan on the wall of their school. The children's ages ranged between 9 and 15 years. After attempts to negotiate the release of the children were rejected by the local government, a few hundred protesters gathered in front of Oumari Mosque on March 15, 2011 calling for reforms and end of corruption. Soon after the gathering increased in size and it is reported that over 3000 people protested on the first day. This protest was faced with Syrian security forces opening fire on the protesters killing 4 people^[5]. Since then, the city of Daraa and the surrounding villages have had daily protests.

Notes[link]

Further reading[link]

• T.E. Lawrence, (various editions) Seven Pillars of Wisdom, Chapter LXXX
• J.G. Schumacher,(1886) Across the Jordan, pp. 1–148;

External links[link]

• Official Site of Daraa Governorate (Arabic)
• s:Encyclopaedia Biblica/Ecclesiasticus-Eglon (king)#EDREI

Coordinates: 32°37′31″N 36°6′22″E / 32.62528°N 36.10611°E / 32.62528; 36.10611

v t e Cities of Syria Governorate capitals Aleppo Damascus Daraa Deir ez-Zor Hama Al-Hasakah Homs Idlib Latakia Quneitra Ar-Raqqah As-Suwayda Tartus District capitals Afrin Arihah Atarib Ayn al-Arab Azaz Al-Bab Baniyas Al-Bukamal Darayya Dayr Hafir Douma Drekish Fiq Al-Haffah Harem Afrin Jableh Jarabulus Jisr ash-Shugur Kiswe Maarrat al-Numan Manbij Al-Malikiyah Masyaf Mayadin Mhardeh Mukharram al-Foqani Al-Nabk Palmyra Al-Qamishli Qardaha Qatana Al-Qusayr Al-Qutayfah Ra's al-'Ayn Al-Rastan As Safirah Safita Salamiyah Salkhad Al-Sanamayn Shahba Ash-Shaykh Badr Al-Suqaylabiyah Tal Abyad Talkalakh Al-Tall Al-Thawrah Yabrud Zabadani Others Binnish Bosra Al-Darbasiyah Deir Atiyah Al-Hajar al-Aswad Harasta Jaramana Kafr Nabl Khan Shaykhun Ma'arrat Misrin Nawa Saidnaya Salqin Saraqib Sayyidah Zaynab

v t e Daraa Governorate Cities Daraa Izra' Nawa al-Sanamayn Daraa Governorate Towns and villages Bosra Burraq Busra al-Harir Da'el Deir al-Adas al-Harra Hirak Ibta' Inkhil Jassem Kafr Shams al-Karak Khabab Khirbet al-Ghazaleh al-Musayfrah Naseeb Sa'sa Saham al-Jawlan Saida Sheikh Maskin Sheikh Sa'ad Tafas Tubna Zimrin

This Syria location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Hamza Ali Al-Khateeb (حمزة علي الخطيب :Arabic) (October 24, 1997 – May 2011) was a 13-year-old Syrian boy who died allegedly while in the custody of the Syrian government^[1] in Daraa during the 2011 Syrian uprising. On April 29, 2011, he was detained during a protest. On May 25, 2011, his body was delivered to his family, having been badly bruised, along with burn marks, three gunshot wounds, and severed genitals. Hamza's family distributed photos and video of his body to journalists and activists. Shocked by what those depicted, thousands of people showed their support for Hamza online and in street protests.

Background[link]

Hamza lived with his parents in a village called al-Jeezah or al-Giza in Daraa Governorate.^[2] and had enjoyed watching his homing pigeons fly above his house since drought had left him unable to enjoy swimming. He had a reputation for being generous. "He would often ask his parents for money to give to the poor. I remember once he wanted to give someone 100 Syrian Pounds ($2), and his family said it was too much. But Hamza said, 'I have a bed and food while that guy has nothing.' And so he persuaded his parents to give the poor man the 100," his cousin told Al Jazeera.^[3]

Alleged torture[link]

Hamza's family reported that he was not interested in politics, but on April 29, 2011, he joined his family in a rally to break the siege of the city of Daraa. "Everybody seemed to be going to the protest, so he went along as well," said his cousin. Hamza walked with friends and family 12 km along the road from his al-Jeezah north-west to Saida. Firing began almost as the protesters reached Saida. Hamza's cousin reported: "People were killed and wounded, some were arrested. It was chaotic we didn't know at that point what had happened to Hamza. He just disappeared." One source says that Hamza had been among 51 protesters detained by Air Force Intelligence, which detainees allegedly described as having a reputation for brutal torture.^[3]

Mutilation[link]

A video of his body filmed several days after his death showed numerous injuries, including broken bones, gunshot wounds, burn marks, and mutilated genitals.^[4] The Globe and Mail summarized: "His jaw and both kneecaps had been smashed. His flesh was covered with cigarette burns. His penis had been cut off. Other injuries appeared to be consistent with the use of electroshock devices and being whipped with a cable."^[2]

Following the broadcast, by Al-Jazeera, of a video showing Hamz'a body there was widespread outrage, both online and amongst the protesters in Syria. ^[2]

In response to Al Jazeera's story, the chief of Syria's medical examiners association, Dr. Akram El-Shaar, denied that Hamza was tortured. El-Shaar said that he supervised the autopsy in Damascus and that the boy did not have any sign of torture. He also claimed that Hamza had been shot in the Daraa riot and that all signs of disfigurement were due to decay.^[5][6][7][8]

Backlash and impact[link]

Hamza Ali Al-Khateeb hunting Bashar Al-Assad by Carlos Latuff.

Hamza's name has become a rallying cry for protesters. A Facebook page honouring him had more than 105,000 followers by May 2011.^[9] Following the pattern of demonstrators calling Fridays a "day of rage", Saturdays in Syria are being called the "day of Hamza".^[2]

On May 31, 2011, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton marked his death as a turning point in the Syrian uprising, indicating that it "symbolises for many Syrians ... the total collapse of any effort by the Syrian government's to work with and listen to their own people".^[10]

On March 14, 2012 the Guardian released 3,000 leaked emails from Asma's al assad and her father's email accounts. Fawas Akhras, Asma's al Assad's father and Bashar al Assad's father in law, had emailed Bashar al Assad instructing him to respond to allegations that children are tortured in Syria by dismissing it as "British propaganda".^[11]

See also[link]

	Biography portal
	Syria portal

• Mohamed Bouazizi
• Death of Khaled Mohamed Saeed
• Death of Ali Jawad al-Sheikh
• Death of Ali Abdulhadi Mushaima
• Death of Ahmed Jaber al-Qattan

References[link]

External links[link]

• Syrian Free Press segment showing Hamza's body on YouTube
• AlJazeera segment showing Hamza's body on YouTube
• AlJazeera coverage of support protests for Hamza
• CNN's AC360 incident segment
• CNN's John Roberts review
• CNN segment on protest response

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Bashar al-Assad بشار حافظ الأسد
President of Syria
Incumbent
Assumed office 17 July 2000
Prime Minister	Muhammad Mustafa Mero Muhammad Naji al-Otari Adel Safar
Vice President	Farouk al-Sharaa Najah al-Attar
Preceded by	Abdul Halim Khaddam (Acting)
Secretary of the Syrian Regional Command of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 20 June 2000
Deputy	Mohammed Saeed Bekheitan
Preceded by	Hafez al-Assad
Personal details
Born	Bashar Hafez al-Assad (1965-09-11) 11 September 1965 (age 46) Damascus, Syria
Political party	Syrian-led Ba'ath Party (Syrian branch: NPF)
Spouse(s)	Asma al-Akhras
Alma mater	Damascus University
Profession	Ophthalmologist
Religion	Alawi Shia Islam[1]
Website	The President

Bashar Hafez al-Assad (Arabic: بشار حافظ الأسد‎, Baššār al-ʾAsad, ‎‎‎Arabic pronunciation: [bæʃˈʃɑːɾɪlˈʔæsæd])‎; born 11 September 1965) is the current President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Syrian-led branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000.

Al-Assad graduated from the medical school of the University of Damascus in 1988, and started to work as a doctor in the army. Four years later, he attended postgraduate studies at the Western Eye Hospital, in London, specializing in ophthalmology. In 1994, Al-Assad entered the military academy and in 1998, Al-Assad took charge of the Syrian occupation of Lebanon. In December 2000, Assad married Asma Assad, née Akhras. Al-Assad was elected as President of Syria in 2000 and 2007, unopposed each time.^[2][3] During the Syrian uprising, activists and protesters have called for President al-Assad's resignation.^[4]

Early life[link]

Bashar Hafez al-Assad was born in Damascus on 11 September 1965, the son of Aniseh (née Makhluf) and Hafez al-Assad.^[5] His father, Hafez al-Assad, born to a poor family of Alawite background, had risen through the Party ranks, to take control of the Syrian-led branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party in the 1970 Corrective Revolution, thus installing himself as president. Hafez al-Assad purged the Party, and introduced effective Alawite rule of Syria.^[5][6]

Unlike his brothers, Bassel and Maher, and sister, Bushra, Bashar was quiet and reserved and says that he lacked interest in politics or the military.^[7] He later said that he only entered his father's office once while he was in power and he never spoke about politics with him.^[8] He received his primary and secondary education in the Arab-French al-Hurriya School in Damascus^[7] and was an exemplary student.^[9] In 1982, he graduated from high school and went on to study medicine at Damascus University.^[9]

In 1988, Bashar Assad graduated from medical school and began working as an army doctor in the biggest military hospital, "Tishrin", on the outskirts of Damascus.^[10][11] Four years later, he went to the United Kingdom to begin postgraduate training in ophthalmology at the Western Eye Hospital, part of the St Mary's group of teaching hospitals in London.^[12] Bashar at the time had few political aspirations.^[13] His father had been grooming Bashar's older brother, Bassel al-Assad, as the future president, but never openly declaring this intent.^[14] Bashar, however, was recalled in 1994 to the Syrian army, after Bassel's unexpected death in an automobile accident.^[12]

Death of Bassel[link]

The Al-Assad family around 1994. At the front are Hafez al-Assad and his wife, Anisa. At the back row, from left to right: Maher (commander of the Republican Guard), Bashar, Bassel, Majid, and Bushra

Soon after the death of Bassel, Hafez Assad made the decision to make Bashar the new heir-apparent.^[15] Over the next six and half years, until his death in 2000, Hafez went about systematically preparing Bashar for taking over power. Preparations for a smooth transition were made on three levels. First, support was built up for Bashar in the military and security apparatus. Second, Bashar's image was established with the public. And lastly, Bashar was familiarized with the mechanisms of running the country.^[16]

To establish his credentials in the military, Bashar entered in 1994 the military academy at Homs, north of Damascus, and was propelled through the ranks to become a colonel in January 1999.^[10][17][18] To establish a power base for Bashar in the military, old divisional commanders were pushed into retirement, and new, young, Alawite officers with loyalties to him took their place.^[19] Parallel to his military career, Bashar was engaged in public affairs. He was granted wide powers and became a political adviser to President Hafez al-Assad, head of the bureau to receive complaints and appeals of citizens, and led a campaign against corruption. As a result of his campaign against corruption, Bashar was able to remove his potential rivals for president.^[10]

In 1998, Bashar took charge of Syria's Lebanon file, which had since the 1970s been handled by former Vice President Abdul Khaddam, one of the few Sunni officials in the Assad government, who had until then been a potential contender for president.^[19] By taking charge of Syrian affairs in Lebanon, Bashar was able to push Khaddam aside and establish his own power base in Lebanon.^[20] In that same year after minor consultation with Lebanese politicians, Bashar installed Emile Lahoud, a loyal ally of his, as the President of Lebanon and pushed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri aside, by not placing his political weight behind his nomination as prime minister.^[21] To further weaken the old Syrian order in Lebanon, Bashar replaced the long serving de facto Syrian High Commissioner of Lebanon, Ghazi Kanaan, with loyal ally Rustum Ghazali.^[22] Under Bashar, Syrian corruption in Lebanon, which was already estimated at $2 billion per year in the 1990s,^[23] became more rampant and was publicly exposed with the collapse in 2003 of the Lebanese Al-Madina bank.^[24] Al-Madina was used to launder kickback money in the illegal gaming of the UN's Iraqi oil-for-food programme. Sources put the amount transferred and laundered through al-Madina at more than $1 billion, with a 25 percent commission going to Syrian officials and their Lebanese allies, among the recipients of this money were Bashar Assad's brother Maher, Emile Lahoud's son-in-law Elias Murr, and Ghazali.^[25][26]

Presidency[link]

Syria

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Syria

Constitution Constitution Human rights Executive President Bashar al-Assad Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa Najah al-Attar Prime Minister Adel Safar Cabinet Legislature Parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Abrash Judiciary Court system High Judicial Council Supreme Constitutional Court Divisions Governorates Districts Elections General elections 2007 pres. 2012 parl. Political parties National Progressive Front Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party Foreign policy Foreign relations Arab–Israeli conflict

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When the elder Assad died in 2000, Bashar was appointed leader of the Ba'ath Party and the Army, and was elected president unopposed in what the regime claimed to be a massive popular support (97.2% of the votes), after the Majlis Al Sha'ab (Parliament) swiftly voted to lower the minimum age for candidates from 40 to 34 (Assad's age when he was elected). On 27 May 2007, Bashar was approved as president for another seven-year term, with the official result of 97.6% of the votes in a referendum without another candidate.^[27]

In his domestic policy, he has been criticised for a disregard for human rights, economic lapses, and corruption.^[28][29][30] In his foreign policy, Al-Assad is an outspoken critic of the United States and Israel.^[31] The Ba'ath Party remains in control of the parliament, and is constitutionally the "leading party" of the state. Until he became president, Bashar al-Assad was not greatly involved in politics; his only public role was head of the Syrian Computer Society, which introduced the Internet to Syria in 2001. Al-Assad was confirmed as president by an unopposed referendum in 2000. He was expected to take a more liberal approach than his father. In an interview he stated that he saw democracy in Syria as 'a tool to a better life' but then argued that it would take time for democracy to come about and that it could not be rushed.^[32] Politically and economically, Syrian life has changed only slightly since 2000. Immediately after he took office a reform movement made cautious advances during the Damascus Spring, which led al-Assad to shut down Mezzeh prison and release hundreds of political prisoners. However, security crackdowns commenced again within the year.^[33][34]

Economy[link]

Economic liberalization in Syria has been limited, with industry still heavily state-controlled. However some changes have occurred including the introduction of private banking and the encouragement of foreign involvement, most notably in the oil sector. The need for a diversification of the economy has been pressed for by some^[35] as it has been predicted that Syria will change from exporting to having to import oil by 2015. The reliance upon oil is reflected by manufacturing exports representing only 3.1 percent of Syria’s GDP.^[36] These issues are especially relevant as Syria’s population is predicted to more than double to over 34 million by 2050.^[37] There have been mild economic sanctions (the Syria Accountability Act) applied by the United States which further complicate the situation. Of major importance are the negotiations for a free trade association agreement with the European Union.

Human rights[link]

Billboard with portrait of Assad and the text God protects Syria on the old city wall of Damascus 2006

A 2007 law required internet cafes to record all the comments users post on chat forums.^[38] Websites such as Wikipedia Arabic, YouTube and Facebook were blocked intermittently between 2008 and February 2011.^[39][40][41]

Human Rights groups, such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have detailed how Bashar's regime and secret police routinely tortured, imprisoned, and killed political opponents, and those who speak out against the regime.^[42][43]

Since 2006 it expanded the use of travel bans against dissidents, a practice that is illegal under international law.^{[citation needed]} In that regard, Syria is the worst offender among Arab states.^[44]

In an interview with ABC News in 2007^[32] he stated: "We don't have such [things as] political prisoners," yet the New York Times reported the arrest of 30 political prisoners in Syria in December 2007.^[45]

Foreign Policy magazine editorialized on his position in the wake of the 2011 protests:^[46]

During its decades of rule... the Assad family developed a strong political safety net by firmly integrating the military into the regime. In 1970, Hafez al-Assad, Bashar’s father, seized power after rising through the ranks of the Syrian armed forces, during which time he established a network of loyal Alawites by installing them in key posts. In fact, the military, ruling elite, and ruthless secret police are so intertwined that it is now impossible to separate the Assad regime from the security establishment.... So... the regime and its loyal forces have been able to deter all but the most resolute and fearless oppositional activists. In this respect, the situation in Syria is to a certain degree comparable to Saddam Hussein’s strong Sunni minority rule in Iraq.

Foreign relations[link]

Assad with Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev

Assad's first official foreign trip was to meet Jacques Chirac in France, who had warm relations with him. The Middle Eastern Quarterly noted that "As in the case of Iraq, there are lingering questions of Syrian payments to French politicians. Many French politicians join associations and charitable boards both for financial and political gain."^[47]

The United States, European Union, the March 14 Alliance, Israel, and France accuse Assad of providing practical support to militant groups active against Israel and against opposition political groups. The latter category would include most political parties other than Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad.^[48] According to MEMRI, Assad claimed the United States could benefit from the Syrian experience in fighting organizations like the Muslim Brotherhood at the Hama Massacre.^[49]

Assad opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq despite a long-standing animosity between the Syrian and Iraqi governments. Assad used Syria's seat in one of rotating positions on the United Nations Security Council to try to prevent the invasion of Iraq.^[50] Following the Iraq invasion by US and allied forces, Assad was accused of supporting the Iraqi insurgency. A US general accused him of providing funding, logistics, and training to Iraqi and foreign Muslims to launch attacks against U.S. and allied forces occupying Iraq.^[51]

Former President of Brazil Lula da Silva and Bashar al Assad

The February 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and the accusation of Syrian involvement and support for anti-Israeli groups, helped precipitate a crisis in relations with the United States. Assad was criticised for Syria's presence in Lebanon which ended in 2005, and the U.S. placed sanctions upon Syria partly because of this. At Pope John Paul II's funeral in 2005, Assad shook hands with the Israeli president Moshe Katsav.

In the Arab world, Assad mended relations with the Palestine Liberation Organization but relations with many Arab states, in particular Saudi Arabia, have been deteriorating. This is in part due to Assad's continued intervention in Lebanon and his alliance with Iran. Around the time of the 2008 South Ossetia war, Assad made an official visit to Russia. In an interview with the Russian TV channel Vesti, he asserted that one cannot separate the events in the Caucasus from the US presence in Iraq, which he condemned as a direct threat to [Syria's] security."

After the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, many media outlets accused Syria of being involved.^{[citation needed]} as Hariri was anti-Syrian. However, Assad argued that Syria's gradual withdrawal of troops from Lebanon, beginning in 2000, was precipitated as a result of the event and ended in May 2005.^[52]

In 2011, Assad told the Wall Street Journal that he considered himself "anti-Israel" and "anti-West", and that because of these policies he was not in danger of being overthrown.^[31]

Involvement in Lebanon[link]

Despite gaining re-election in 2007, al-Assad’s position was considered by some to have been weakened by the withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon following the Cedar Revolution in 2005. There has also been pressure from the U.S. concerning claims that Syria is linked to terrorist networks, exacerbated by Syrian condemnation of the assassination of Imad Mughniyeh, Hezbollah military leader, in Damascus in 2008. Interior Minister Bassam Abdul-Majeed stated that, "Syria, which condemns this cowardly terrorist act, expresses condolences to the martyr family and to the Lebanese people.”^[53]

Arab-Israeli conflict[link]

In a speech about the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict in August 2006, Bashar al-Assad said that Hezbollah had "hoisted the banner of victory," hailing its actions as a "successful resistance."^[54] He claimed that Arab resistance was growing stronger, and warned Israel that "your warplanes, rockets, and your atomic bomb will not protect you in the future." He called Israel an enemy with whom no peace could be achieved as long as they and their allies (especially the U.S.) support the practice of preemptive war. In the same speech, he also called Arab leaders that have criticized Hezbollah "half-men."

In April 2008, Assad told a Qatari newspaper that Syria and Israel had been discussing a peace treaty for a year, with Turkey as a go-between. This was confirmed in May 2008, by a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. As well as a peace treaty, the future of the Golan Heights is being discussed. Assad was quoted in The Guardian as telling the Qatari paper:

. . . there would be no direct negotiations with Israel until a new US president takes office. The US was the only party qualified to sponsor any direct talks, [Assad] told the paper, but added that the Bush administration "does not have the vision or will for the peace process. It does not have anything."^[55]

According to leaked American cables, Bashar al Assad called Hamas an "uninvited guest" and said "If you want me to be effective and active, I have to have a relationship with all parties. Hamas is Muslim Brotherhood, but we have to deal with the reality of their presence.", comparing Hamas to the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood which was crushed by his father Hafez al Assad. He then claimed Hamas would disappear if peace was brought to the Middle East.^[56][57]

Assad has indicated that the peace treaty that he envisions would not be the same kind of peace treaty Israel has with Egypt where there is a legal border crossing and open trade. In a 2006 interview with Charlie Rose, Assad said “There is a big difference between talking about a peace treaty and peace. A peace treaty is like a permanent ceasefire. There’s no war, maybe you have an embassy, but you actually won’t have trade, you won’t have normal relations because people will not be sympathetic to this relation as long as they are sympathetic with the Palestinians: half a million who live in Syria and half a million in Lebanon and another few millions in other Arab countries.”^[58]

During the visit of Pope John Paul II to Syria in 2001, Bashar al-Assad requested an apology to Muslims for the medieval Crusades and criticised Israeli treatment of Palestinians. Comparing their suffering to that believed to have been endured by Jesus Christ in Palestine, Assad claimed that the Jews "tried to kill the principles of all religions with the same mentality in which they betrayed Jesus Christ and the same way they tried to betray and kill the Prophet Muhammad."^{[59][60][61][62][63]} Responding to claims that his comment was antisemitic, Assad said that whereas Judaism is a racially heterogeneous religion, the Syrian people are the core of the Semitic race and therefore are opposed to the term antisemitism. When offered to retract his comment implying that the Jews were responsible for Jesus' suffering, Assad replied, "As always, these are historical facts that we cannot deny," and stressed that his remarks were not anti-Jewish.^[64] In February 2011 Bashar backed an initiative to restore 10 synagogues in Syria, which had a Jewish community numbering 30,000 in 1947 but has only 200 Jews today.^[65]

2011–2012 uprising[link]

Following anti-government demonstrations in some other Middle Eastern countries, protests in Syria started on 26 January 2011. Protesters called for political reforms and the re-instatement of civil rights, as well as an end to the state of emergency which had been in place since 1963.^[66] One attempt at a "day of rage" was set for 4–5 February 2011, though it ended uneventfully.^[67][68] Protests on 18–19 March were the largest to take place in Syria for decades and the Syrian authority responded with violence against its protesting citizens.

On 18 May 2011, Barack Obama, the U.S. President, signed an Executive order putting into effect sanctions against Bashar al-Assad in an effort to pressure his government "to end its use of violence against its people and begin transitioning to a democratic system that protects the rights of the Syrian people."^[69] The sanctions effectively freeze any of the Syrian President's assets either in the United States proper or within U.S. jurisdiction.^[70] On May 23, 2011 EU Foreign ministers agreed at a meeting in Brussels to add President Assad and nine other officials to a list affected by travel bans and asset freezes.^[71] On May 24, 2011 Canada imposed sanctions on Syrian leaders, including President Assad.^[72]

On 20 June 2011, in a speech lasting nearly an hour, in response to the demands of protesters and foreign pressure, al-Assad promised a national dialogue involving movement toward reform, new parliamentary elections, and greater freedoms. He also urged refugees to return home from Turkey, while assuring them amnesty and blaming all unrest on a small number of saboteurs.^[73]

In August 2011, Syrian security forces attacked the country's best-known political cartoonist, Ali Farzat, a noted critic of Syria's government and its five-month crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators and dissent. Relatives of the severely beaten humorist told Western media that the attackers threatened to break Farzat's bones as a warning for him to stop drawing cartoons of government officials, particularly the president, Bashar al-Assad. Ferzat, who recently celebrated his 60th birthday, was hospitalized with fractures in both hands and blunt force trauma to the head.^[74][75]

By the end of January 2012, it was reported that over 5,000 civilians and protesters had been killed by the Syrian army, militia (Shabeeha) and security agents, while 1,100 people had been killed by the anti-regime forces.^[76]

On 10 January 2012, Assad gave a speech in which he accused the uprising of being plotted by foreign countries and claimed that "victory [was] near". He also said that the Arab League, by suspending Syria, revealed that it was no longer Arab. However, al-Assad also said the country would not "close doors" to an Arab-brokered solution if "national sovereignty" was respected. He also said a referendum on a new constitution could be held in March.^[77]

Bashar and Asma al-Assad

On 27 February 2012, Syria claimed that a referendum on an update to the nations constitution, hailed as 'a showpiece of reform' received 90% support. The referendum imposes a fourteen year cumulative term limit for the president of Syria. The referendum has been claimed as meaningless by foreign nations including the US and Turkey, and the European Union announced fresh sanctions against key regime figures.^[78]

Personal life[link]

Assad speaks English and basic conversational French, having studied at the Franco-Arab al-Hurriyah school in Damascus. In December 2000, Assad married Asma Assad, née Akhras,^[79] a British citizen of Syrian origin, from Acton, London.^[80] On 3 December 2001, they became the parents of their first-born child, named Hafez after the child's grandfather Hafez al-Assad. Zein was born on 5 November 2003, and Karim on 16 December 2004.

See also[link]

	Syria portal
	Biography portal
	Politics portal

• Cabinet of Syria
• List of current heads of state and government

References[link]

Notes

Bibliography

• Blanford, Nicholas (2006). Killing Mr Lebanon: The Assassination of Rafik Hariri and Its Impact on the Middle East. I. B. Taurus & Co.. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/978-184-511-8|978-184-511-8]]. 
• Lane, Jan-Erik; Redissi, Hamadi (2004). Religion And Politics: Islam And Muslim Civilisation. Ashagate Publiching Company. ISBN 0-7546-4167-8. 
• Leverett, Flynt L. (2005). Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial By Fire. Brookings Institution. ISBN 978-0-8157-5204-2. 
• Minahan, James (2002). Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: A-C. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-32109-2. 
• Ma'oz, Moshe; Gian, Joseph; Winckler, Onn (1999). Modern Syria: From Ottoman Rule to Pivotal Role in the Middle East. Sussex Academic Press. ISBN 1-898723-83-4. 
• Tucker, Spencer C. (2008). The Encyclopedia of the Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Political, Social, and Military History. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-85109-841-5. 
• Zisser, Eyal (2007). Commanding Syria: Bashar Al-Asad And the First Years in Power. I. B. Tauris & Co.. ISBN 978-1-84511-153-3. 

Further reading[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Bashar al-Assad

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bashar al-Assad

• Official website
  • Biography, decrees, speeches, interviews, press releases
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Bashar al-Assad on Charlie Rose
  • Transcript of 2010 conversation
• Bashar al-Assad at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by or about Bashar al-Assad in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Bashar al-Assad collected news and commentary at Al Jazeera English
• Bashar al-Assad collected news and commentary at The Guardian
• Bashar al-Assad collected news and commentary at Ha'aretz
• Bashar al-Assad collected news and commentary at The Jerusalem Post
• Bashar al-Assad collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Bashar al-Assad at the Notable Names Database
• Profile at the LookLex Encyclopedia
• Unofficial website
• Unofficial website with CV, Speeches, Pictures and Mideast Just Peace

Articles

• Syria’s Proxy Forces in Iraq^{[dead link]}, Al-Hayat (London), 12 April 2003 at Middle East Intelligence Bulletin
• Profile: Syria's Bashar al-Assad BBC News, 10 March 2005
• Bashar al-Assad's Lebanon Gamble, William Harris, Middle East Quarterly, Summer 2005
• Assad on the Brink, David Hirst, The Nation, 21 November 2005
• Syria's Leaders, Esther Pan, Council on Foreign Relations, 10 March 2006
• Connecting the dots in Lebanon, Omar Raad, Ya Libnan Volunteer, 2 December 2006
• The Assad Dynasty in Syria: From Father to Son, Kristin Helberg, Deutsche Welle, 2009 at qantara.de
• Interview With Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, The Wall Street Journal, 31 January 2011
• Profile: Bashar al-Assad, Al Jazeera English, 25 March 2011

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