Ba'athist Syria

Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. Its capital and largest city is Damascus. The modern Syrian state was established in the mid-20th century, gaining de jure independence as a parliamentary republic in 1945 and de facto independence in April 1946. The post-independence period was marked by political instability, including multiple coups. In 1958, Syria briefly united with Egypt. A 1963 coup by the Ba'ath Party established a one-party state, which governed under martial law from 1963 to 2011. Further internal power struggles led to coups in 1966 and 1970, the latter bringing Hafez al-Assad to power, under whom Syria became a hereditary dictatorship.