Syria 2006

Syria 2006

In 2006, Syria was a developing nation located in the Middle East. With a population of approximately 19 million people, the official language was Arabic and the majority of the population practiced Islam. The economy was largely based on agriculture, oil and tourism; its main export partners included Iraq, Turkey and Lebanon.

According to constructmaterials, the government at this time had been led by President Bashar al-Assad since 2000 and had been a member of the United Nations since 1945. Syria was considered one of the less advanced countries in the Middle East with relatively low standards of living and healthcare systems. In terms of education, access to basic education had improved significantly since 2000 but still remained unequal across different regions and socioeconomic groups.

Overall, Syria in 2006 was a diverse nation that embraced its cultural heritage whilst making positive strides towards economic development. Despite its turbulent past under Syrian rule, it enjoyed strong relationships with neighbouring countries as well as with other Middle Eastern nations which helped to foster an atmosphere of peace and stability. With continued investments into infrastructure development as well as education initiatives, Syria was slowly becoming more developed than it had been previously.

Yearbook 2006

Syria. According to CountryAAH, major public holidays in Syria include Independence Day (April 17) and New Year (January 1). President Bashar al-Asad carried out a government reform on February 11. Faruq al-Shara, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, was appointed new Vice President. He replaced Abdel Halim Khaddam, who resigned in June 2005 and then went into exile where he accused al-Asad of participating in the assassination of Lebanon’s former prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri. Prime Minister Muhammed Naji al-Otari retained his post. The new foreign minister became Walid al-Muallim. On March 23, al-Asad appointed Najah al-Attar as Syria’s first female vice president. The former Minister of Culture (1976-2000) was also given responsibility for cultural issues.

Oppositionists in exile formed a national rescue front in March. At the Brussels meeting there was the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood and Khaddam. They also met in June in London.

UN investigator Serge Brammertz, a Belgian lawyer who in January took over the investigation into the assassination of Lebanon’s former prime minister al-Hariri, reported to the Security Council at the beginning of the year that Syria showed more willingness to cooperate. In late April, he interviewed President al-Asad and other Syrian leaders and presented a sixth report at the end of the year.

The plans for an international tribunal created tensions in Lebanon, where Syria’s influence and role remained disputed.

In May, it was reported that Syrian writer and government critic Michel Kilo was arrested after writing a draft call demanding Syria cease to interfere in Lebanon’s internal affairs. Several others were also arrested, including a member of the Communist Labor Party and representatives of various human rights groups. Syria or Syria-friendly forces were also accused of the November 21 assassination of Lebanese Industry Minister Pierre Gemayel. The murder sparked vigorous protests in Lebanon.

In November, Syria restored relations with Iraq after almost 25 years of interruption. A cross-political inquiry into US future policy in Iraq and the Middle East, led by former Secretary of State James Baker, also suggested that the United States should include Syria and Iran in these talks, which would be a major departure from the US ruling line.

The Danish Muhammad cartoons triggered riots in Syria’s capital Damascus in early February. Protesters invaded February 4 in the area that housed the Danish, Swedish and Chilean embassies, which caught fire. The Norwegian embassy was also attacked. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accused Syria and Iran of trying to inflame the conflict. The Nordic governments also criticized Syria.

Syrian security forces averted several suspected acts of violence during the year. In February, three militant Islamists who were allegedly planning terrorist acts in the capital were killed. In June, four men were killed and one security guard trying to attack the Syrian state television and radio house in Damascus. In September, four men were killed trying to storm the US embassy.

Prime Minister Muhammed Naji al-Otari was reported in February to have signed a decree that state authorities and state-owned companies would use the euro instead of the dollar to pay foreign goods and services. The purpose was probably to reduce the vulnerability to US pressure.

Why did the gas crisis occur in Syria at all? In early April, US President Trump surprisingly announced that the United States would withdraw completely from Syria, where it would otherwise have 2,000 troops deployed. This message provoked much bitterness in Israel, fearing that Iran would gain a strong position in the country once the country’s Islamists were defeated. Rumors therefore spoke of the Israeli intelligence service taking part in the plot surrounding the alleged poison gas attack, with the intention of making the United States stay. Two days after the alleged attack, Israel even attacked a Syrian military base with F-15 fighter jets over Lebanon. Israel had routinely attacked targets in Syria for years, but this attack was different as it obviously went after Iranian troops in Syria. During the previous attacks, Russia had kept low profile because Israel apparently went after Hezbollah, but the attack on Iranian troops triggered a sharp Russian reaction. Russia declared that it would no longer allow unprovoked Israeli attacks on Syria. In other words, Russia threatened to shoot down Israeli aircraft. An escalation of the conflict that was in Israel’s interest. On April 4, delegations from Russia, Turkey and Iran met to discuss a future plan for Syria. Israel wanted to clamp down on this plan by creating conflict and bringing the western colonial states into the conflict, and Russia, on the other hand, would not allow the Israeli leg span. As the armed conflict ended in increasingly large parts of Syria, Israel and the West created new conflicts because they did not want the new map to be drawn. A new element of internationalization was thus brought into conflict. Israel wanted to clamp down on this plan by creating conflict and bringing the western colonial states into the conflict, and Russia, on the other hand, would not allow the Israeli leg span. As the armed conflict ended in increasingly large parts of Syria, Israel and the West created new conflicts because they did not want the new map to be drawn. A new element of internationalization was thus brought into conflict.

Russia brought the West’s attack on Syria to the UN Security Council and issued a resolution calling for the cessation of armed foreign aggression against Syria. Apart from Russia, the resolution was supported only by China and Bolivia. The UN Secretary-General called for no escalation of the conflict and called on the Member States to respect the UN Charter, which prohibits international military actions not sanctioned by the Security Council. Colonial attacks on Syria were condemned throughout most of the world, but welcomed by Islamic dictatorships in the Arabian Peninsula, the EU, NATO and the vassal states of Europe.

In early May, Israel presented “evidence” that Iran breached the International Cooperation Agreement on Nuclear Disarmament with the EU, US, Russia and China. However, the Israeli evidence was rejected by both the EU, Russia and China as completely untrustworthy. When the false offensive failed, Israel carried out extensive May 8 attacks on Iranian targets in Syria. 15 were killed, including 8 Iranians. The purpose was, as in April, to force an Iranian backlash. It failed again. Nevertheless, on May 10, the United States declared – as expected – that it would no longer comply with the International Cooperation Agreement with Iran. The decision was in violation of international law, as the agreement had the UN Security Council blue stamp, but both the United States and Israel routinely violate international law. A few hours later, Israel carried out the most extensive aircraft attack on Iranian targets in Syria since the war in 1973. 27 were killed, including 11 Iranians and 6 Syrian soldiers. Once again, the Iranian counterpart failed. Israel claimed that it had been subjected to Iranian rocket fire in the Golan prior to the attack, but Israel could not subsequently provide any material evidence of it, and it did not make sense that Iran should attack in the highly explosive situation Israel and the United States had created in the region. (and it did not make sense for Iran to attack in the highly explosive situation Israel and the United States had created in the region. (and it did not make sense for Iran to attack in the highly explosive situation Israel and the United States had created in the region.

Netanyahu had been in Moscow a few days before the May 10 attack. Apparently threatening Russia not to send the S-300 anti-aircraft system to Syria, which Russia had threatened after the Western attack on Syria in April. Israeli generals had stated in advance that if Russia sent the S-300 to Syria, Israel would attack the systems even before Russia could install them. The S-300 would provide Syria with significantly better protection against the constant Israeli airstrikes, and this was what Israel wanted to prevent. The rogue state would have free space in Syrian airspace. Israel and the US had drastically exacerbated the already dramatic political-military situation in the region with the attacks on Syria and the US threats to Iran.

The Assad regime, with Russian aid, continued the fight against jihadists in the eastern, western and southern parts of the country. The United States came to the rescue of jihadists in late May as it bombed pro-Assad militias around Deir Azzoor and in early July, Israel bombed Syrian forces in Quneitra province, which border on the Golan Heights. In the south, Assad’s offensive sent hundreds of thousands of Syrians to flee. Jordan had closed its border, so they were spread across most of the southern part of the country. In July, Assaf regained the Deraa regime, where the uprising against his regime had begun 7 years earlier.

In June, Amnesty International published a report dismantling US lies about “precision bombing” in Syria. During the Raqqa recapture, the United States conducted thousands of drone and aircraft attacks on the city. Attacks that, according to Amnesty, cost thousands of civilians and destroyed 90% of the city. Following the inauguration of Trump as President of the United States in January 2017, he ordered the military to no longer take into account civilians during military operations in Syria, Afghanistan and other countries where the United States ravaged. The concept of “collateral damage” disappeared from the military discourse. The military no longer distinguished between civilians and armed men – a clear violation of the 4th Geneva Convention.

Syria Map with Surrounding Countries