The Middle East is known for its ancient history, as well as the region where Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Zoroastrianism originated. Now the region attracts attention as the most restless. It is with him that most of the news is connected at the moment.

The oldest states on the planet existed on the territory of the Middle East, but the current state of the region is of particular interest.

What is happening in Yemen, the agreement on Iran's nuclear program, the actions of Saudi Arabia in the oil market - all this forms a news flow and greatly affects the global economy.

Middle East countries

Now the Middle East includes Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bahrain, Georgia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestinian National Authority, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia.

From a political standpoint, the Middle East has rarely been stable, but now the instability is extremely high.

Arabic dialects in the Middle East

This map shows the vast extent of the different dialects of the Arabic language and the great linguistic diversity.

This situation brings us back to the caliphates of the 6th and 7th centuries, who spread the Arabic language from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa and the Middle East. But over the past 1300 years, individual dialects have been very far from each other.

And where the distribution of the dialect does not coincide with state borders, that is, with the boundaries of the communities, various problems can arise.

Shiites and Sunnis

The story of the division of Islam between Sunnis and Shiites began with the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. Some Muslims argued that power should pass to Ali, who was the son-in-law of Muhammad. As a result, the power struggle was lost by Ali's supporters in civil war who were just called Shiites.

Nevertheless, a separate branch of Islam appeared, which now includes about 10-15% of Muslims around the world. However, only in Iran and Iraq they make up the majority.

Today, the religious confrontation has turned into a political one. Shiite political forces, led by Iran, and Sunni, led by Saudi Arabia, are fighting for influence in the region.

This is a campaign for a cold war within the region, but often it develops into real military clashes.

Ethnic groups of the Middle East

The most important color on the map of Middle Eastern ethnic groups is yellow: Arabs, who are the majority in almost all Middle Eastern countries, including North African countries.

The exception is Israel, where Jews predominate ( pink color), Iran, where the population is Persian (orange), Turkey (green), and Afghanistan, where ethnic diversity is generally high.

Another important color on this map is red. Ethnic Kurds do not have their own country, but are strongly represented in Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.

Oil and gas in the Middle East

The Middle East produces about a third of the world's oil and about 10% of gas. The region holds about a third of all natural gas reserves, but it is more difficult to transport.

Most of extracted energy resources are exported.

The economies of the countries in the region are heavily dependent on oil supplies, and this wealth has also led to many conflicts in the past few decades.

The map shows the main hydrocarbon reserves and transportation routes. Energy resources are largely concentrated in three countries that have historically competed with each other: Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

The most interesting thing is that the confrontation has been actively supported by the United States since the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.

Importance of the Suez Canal to World Trade

The object that forever changed world trade is located in the Middle East.

After Egypt opened the canal in 1868 after 10 years of work, a 100-mile artificial track firmly connected Europe and Asia. The significance of the canal for the world was so obvious and great that after the British conquered Egypt in 1880, the leading world powers signed an agreement that is still in force today, stating that the canal will be forever open to merchant and warships of any country.

Today, about 8% of all world trade flows go through the Suez Canal.

Oil, trade and the military in the Strait of Hormuz

The world economy is also largely dependent on the narrow strait between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula. In 1980, US President Jimmy Carter issued the "Carter Doctrine" which suggested that the US would use military force to protect its access to Persian Gulf oil.

After that, the Strait of Hormuz became the most militarized section of the waters on the entire planet.

The US deployed large naval forces to protect exports during the Iran-Iraq war and later during the war in Persian Gulf. Now the forces remain there to prevent the blocking of the channel by Iran.

Apparently, as long as the world is dependent on oil and the Middle East is restless, the armed forces will remain in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's nuclear program and a possible Israeli attack plan

Iran's nuclear program raised many questions from other states, but Israel's reaction was one of the strongest, since these countries are far from friendly.

The Iranian authorities are trying to convince the whole world that the program is exclusively peaceful. Nevertheless, UN sanctions led to the fact that the Iranian economy faced great difficulties, since it was impossible to export oil.

At the same time, Israel fears that Iran could create nuclear weapon and use against him, and Iran may be concerned that it will always be under the threat of an Israeli strike if it does not possess weapons.

The threat of the Islamic State

The Islamic State threat is still strong. The situation in Libya is rapidly deteriorating, despite the bombing by Egypt of the positions of militants of the Islamic State terrorist organization. Every day they manage to expand their spheres of influence in the country.

Libya may soon be completely under the control of IS militants. There is a threat to Saudi Arabia, as ISIS leaders have already said that it is part of the "Holy Caliphate" that needs to be freed from the "wicked".

There is a serious possibility of a cessation of supplies from Libya in general, as well as problems with transportation. In early February, US President Barack Obama sent an appeal to the US Congress to allow the use of military force against ISIS for a period of three years.

Yemen - a new hotspot

Zaidi Shia rebels, whose Houthi (Houthi) paramilitary wing captured Sanaa, the Yemeni capital, in February 2015, forcing Saudi-loyal Yemeni President Abd Rabbah Mansour Hadi to flee, are beginning to expand their spheres of influence.

Their success may push the Shiites from Saudi Arabia to start an armed struggle with the country's authorities.

The civil war that Yemen is slipping into could become a new episode of confrontation between Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia, which is the most rich country region, which also has the largest oil reserves in the world.

At the same time, most of the explored reserves of the kingdom are located in the southern regions of the country, populated mainly by Shiites and located in close proximity to the border with Yemen, the total length of which is about 1.8 thousand km.

The Middle East is known for its ancient history, as well as the region where Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Zoroastrianism originated. Now the region attracts attention as the most restless. It is with him that most of the news is connected at the moment.

The oldest states on the planet existed on the territory of the Middle East, but the current state of the region is of particular interest.

What is happening in Yemen, the agreement on Iran's nuclear program, the actions of Saudi Arabia in the oil market - all this forms a news flow and greatly affects the global economy.

COUNTRIES OF THE MIDDLE EAST

Now the Middle East includes Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bahrain, Georgia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestinian National Authority, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia.

From a political standpoint, the Middle East has rarely been stable, but now the instability is extremely high.

ARABIC DIALECTS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

This map shows the vast extent of the different dialects of the Arabic language and the great linguistic diversity.

This situation brings us back to the caliphates of the 6th and 7th centuries, who spread the Arabic language from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa and the Middle East. But over the past 1300 years, individual dialects have been very far from each other.

And where the distribution of the dialect does not coincide with state borders, that is, with the boundaries of the communities, various problems can arise.

SHIATS AND SUNNITS

The story of the division of Islam between Sunnis and Shiites began with the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. Some Muslims argued that power should pass to Ali, who was the son-in-law of Muhammad. As a result, the struggle for power was lost by Ali's supporters in the civil war, who were just called Shiites.

Nevertheless, a separate branch of Islam appeared, which now includes about 10-15% of Muslims around the world. However, only in Iran and Iraq they make up the majority.

Today, the religious confrontation has turned into a political one. Shiite political forces, led by Iran, and Sunni, led by Saudi Arabia, are fighting for influence in the region.

This is a campaign for a cold war within the region, but often it develops into real military clashes.

ETHNIC GROUPS OF THE MIDDLE EAST

The most important color on the map of Middle Eastern ethnic groups is yellow: Arabs, who are the majority in almost all Middle Eastern countries, including North African countries.

The exceptions are Israel, which is predominantly Jewish (pink), Iran, where the population is Persian (orange), Turkey (green), and Afghanistan, where ethnic diversity is generally high.

Another important color on this map is red. Ethnic Kurds do not have their own country, but are strongly represented in Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.

OIL AND GAS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

The Middle East produces about a third of the world's oil and about 10% of gas. The region holds about a third of all natural gas reserves, but it is more difficult to transport.

Most of the produced energy resources are exported.

The economies of the countries in the region are heavily dependent on oil supplies, and this wealth has also led to many conflicts in the past few decades.

The map shows the main hydrocarbon reserves and transportation routes. Energy resources are largely concentrated in three countries that have historically competed with each other: Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

The most interesting thing is that the confrontation has been actively supported by the United States since the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SUEK CANAL TO WORLD TRADE

The object that forever changed world trade is located in the Middle East.

After Egypt opened the canal in 1868 after 10 years of work, a 100-mile artificial track firmly connected Europe and Asia. The significance of the canal for the world was so obvious and great that after the British conquered Egypt in 1880, the leading world powers signed an agreement that is still in force today, stating that the canal will be forever open to merchant and warships of any country.

Today, about 8% of all world trade flows go through the Suez Canal.

OIL, TRADE AND THE MILITARY IN THE STRAITS OF HORMUZ

The world economy is also largely dependent on the narrow strait between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula. In 1980, US President Jimmy Carter issued the "Carter Doctrine" which suggested that the US would use military force to protect its access to Persian Gulf oil.

After that, the Strait of Hormuz became the most militarized section of the waters on the entire planet.

The US deployed large naval forces to protect exports during the Iran-Iraq War and later during the Gulf War. Now the forces remain there to prevent the blocking of the channel by Iran.

Apparently, as long as the world is dependent on oil and the Middle East is restless, the armed forces will remain in the Strait of Hormuz.

IRAN'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM AND ISRAEL'S POSSIBLE ATTACK PLAN

Iran's nuclear program raised many questions from other states, but Israel's reaction was one of the strongest, since these countries are far from friendly.

The Iranian authorities are trying to convince the whole world that the program is exclusively peaceful. Nevertheless, UN sanctions led to the fact that the Iranian economy faced great difficulties, since it was impossible to export oil.

At the same time, Israel fears that Iran could develop nuclear weapons and use against them, and Iran may be worried that it will always be under the threat of an Israeli strike if it does not possess weapons.

THE "ISLAMIC STATE" THREAT

The Islamic State threat is still strong. The situation in Libya is rapidly deteriorating, despite the bombing by Egypt of the positions of militants of the Islamic State terrorist organization. Every day they manage to expand their spheres of influence in the country.

Libya may soon be completely under the control of IS militants. There is a threat to Saudi Arabia, as ISIS leaders have already said that it is part of the "Holy Caliphate" that needs to be freed from the "wicked".

There is a serious possibility of a cessation of supplies from Libya in general, as well as problems with transportation. In early February, US President Barack Obama sent an appeal to the US Congress with a request to allow the use of military force against ISIS for a period of three years.

YEMEN IS A NEW POINT OF RISK

Zaidi Shia rebels, whose Houthi (Houthi) paramilitary wing captured Sanaa, the Yemeni capital, in February 2015, forcing Saudi-loyal Yemeni President Abd Rabbah Mansour Hadi to flee, are beginning to expand their spheres of influence.

Their success may push the Shiites from Saudi Arabia to start an armed struggle with the country's authorities.

The civil war that Yemen is slipping into could become a new episode of confrontation between Shiite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia, which is the richest country in the region, and also has the largest oil reserves in the world.

At the same time, most of the explored reserves of the kingdom are located in the southern regions of the country, populated mainly by Shiites and located in close proximity to the border with Yemen, the total length of which is about 1.8 thousand km.

Syria on the world map

It is difficult to find an adult who has not heard about the state of Syria. Of course, they know about it mainly because of the war that has been going on in the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic since 2011. At first it was a confrontation between government troops and the opposition, which in 2014 grew into a clash between supporters of the official government and ISIS and anti-government groups.

But if you look closely at the map of Syria, it becomes clear that the country is located in places where human civilization was born several millennia ago. And the capital of the SAR - the city of Damascus - is one of the oldest capitals on the planet. The only pity is that most of the historical monuments located on the territory of the country were destroyed by the Islamists during the civil war.

Where is Syria located

Syria on the world map

Syria. Satellite map
The map can be enlarged or reduced

Syria. Physical map

Syria on the world map

Syria map

Syria is an eastern state located in Asia Minor on the Eurasian continent. The territory of the country is the place where the events described in the Bible took place. Lebanon has common borders with Syria, Jordan with Turkey, and Iraq.

The history and culture of the country, respectively, was influenced by its neighbors, which is noticeable in the architecture of the border structures. The western part of Syria is washed by the waters mediterranean sea, and its territory is crossed by the Euphrates River. Along the northeastern border with Turkey, another famous river in the Middle East, the Tigris, carries its waters for 44 km.

Population of the country

Approximately lives on the territory of Syria (data from different sources differ) 13? 18 million people. Of these, about 90% are Syrians, living mainly on the Mediterranean coast. 9% is Kurdish, leading a nomadic lifestyle and about 1% is Armenian, living mainly in the city of Aleppo.

Historically, in Syria there are objects belonging to various confessions, including Christian ones. However, the main religion of the country is Islam. About 93% of Syrians profess it, and 6% - Christianity of various directions.

The official language is Arabic, and the president exercises power in the country.

Procedure for electing the president

The first elections of the leader of the country on an alternative basis took place in 2014. Bashar al-Assad was elected President. The elections were held during the period of armed confrontation between government troops and the opposition. Then most of the refugees (about 2.5 million people) who ended up in Turkey and Jordan could not take part in them.

During the elections, recognized by legitimate observers from 30 countries, Bashar al-Assad won, for whom 88.7% of voters or 10.3 million people voted. Hassan al-Nuri came in second with 4.3% of the vote. But the rebels did not recognize Assad's victory in the elections, and the armed confrontation in Syria continued.

The oldest states on the planet existed on the territory of the Middle East, but the current state of the region is of particular interest.

What is happening in Yemen, the agreement on Iran's nuclear program, the actions of Saudi Arabia in the oil market - all this forms a news flow and greatly affects the global economy.

COUNTRIES OF THE MIDDLE EAST

Now the Middle East includes Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bahrain, Georgia, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Lebanon, Palestinian National Authority, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia.

From a political standpoint, the Middle East has rarely been stable, but now the instability is extremely high.

This map shows the vast extent of the different dialects of the Arabic language and the great linguistic diversity.

This situation brings us back to the caliphates of the 6th and 7th centuries, who spread the Arabic language from the Arabian Peninsula to Africa and the Middle East. But over the past 1300 years, individual dialects have been very far from each other.

And where the distribution of the dialect does not coincide with state borders, that is, with the boundaries of the communities, various problems can arise.

The story of the division of Islam between Sunnis and Shiites began with the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632. Some Muslims argued that power should pass to Ali, who was the son-in-law of Muhammad. As a result, the struggle for power was lost by Ali's supporters in the civil war, who were just called Shiites.

Nevertheless, a separate branch of Islam appeared, which now includes about 10-15% of Muslims around the world. However, only in Iran and Iraq they make up the majority.

Today, the religious confrontation has turned into a political one. Shiite political forces, led by Iran, and Sunni, led by Saudi Arabia, are fighting for influence in the region.

This is a campaign for a cold war within the region, but often it develops into real military clashes.

The most important color on the map of Middle Eastern ethnic groups is yellow: Arabs, who are the majority in almost all Middle Eastern countries, including North African countries.

The exceptions are Israel, which is predominantly Jewish (pink), Iran, where the population is Persian (orange), Turkey (green), and Afghanistan, where ethnic diversity is generally high.

Another important color on this map is red. Ethnic Kurds do not have their own country, but are strongly represented in Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.

The Middle East produces about a third of the world's oil and about 10% of gas. The region holds about a third of all natural gas reserves, but it is more difficult to transport.

Most of the produced energy resources are exported.

The economies of the countries in the region are heavily dependent on oil supplies, and this wealth has also led to many conflicts in the past few decades.

The map shows the main hydrocarbon reserves and transportation routes. Energy resources are largely concentrated in three countries that have historically competed with each other: Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

The most interesting thing is that the confrontation has been actively supported by the United States since the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.

The object that forever changed world trade is located in the Middle East.

After Egypt opened the canal in 1868 after 10 years of work, a 100-mile artificial track firmly connected Europe and Asia. The significance of the canal for the world was so obvious and great that after the British conquered Egypt in 1880, the leading world powers signed an agreement that is still in force today, stating that the canal will be forever open to merchant and warships of any country.

Today, about 8% of all world trade flows go through the Suez Canal.

The world economy is also largely dependent on the narrow strait between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula. In 1980, US President Jimmy Carter issued the "Carter Doctrine" which suggested that the US would use military force to protect its access to Persian Gulf oil.

After that, the Strait of Hormuz became the most militarized section of the waters on the entire planet.

The US deployed large naval forces to protect exports during the Iran-Iraq War and later during the Gulf War. Now the forces remain there to prevent the blocking of the channel by Iran.

Apparently, as long as the world is dependent on oil and the Middle East is restless, the armed forces will remain in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's nuclear program raised many questions from other states, but Israel's reaction was one of the strongest, since these countries are far from friendly.

The Iranian authorities are trying to convince the whole world that the program is exclusively peaceful. Nevertheless, UN sanctions led to the fact that the Iranian economy faced great difficulties, since it was impossible to export oil.

At the same time, Israel fears that Iran could develop nuclear weapons and use against them, and Iran may be worried that it will always be under the threat of an Israeli strike if it does not possess weapons.

The Islamic State threat is still strong. The situation in Libya is rapidly deteriorating, despite the bombing by Egypt of the positions of militants of the Islamic State terrorist organization. Every day they manage to expand their spheres of influence in the country.

Libya may soon be completely under the control of IS militants. There is a threat to Saudi Arabia, as ISIS leaders have already said that it is part of the "Holy Caliphate" that needs to be freed from the "wicked".

There is a serious possibility of a cessation of supplies from Libya in general, as well as problems with transportation. In early February, US President Barack Obama sent an appeal to the US Congress with a request to allow the use of military force against ISIS for a period of three years.

The Syrian Arab State is a young country that is easily found in the very center of the globe, in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is located on the Eurasian continent in southwestern Asia. Spread just north of the equator in the Middle East.

In the west, her lands are washed by waters mediterranean sea, all other borders are land. detailed map Syria exhibits angular, jagged outlines that bear witness to a long and complex history. The advantageous position in the center of the Arab world led to an impressive role in the trade, economic and political processes of the region.

The main natural wealth of the state is fertile land, on which citrus crops grow well in a hot climate. Their imports and exports occupy a significant share of the country's trade turnover.

Syria on the world map: geography, nature and climate

In terms of size, the state of Syria on the world map occupies 87th place. Its area is 185,180 km². Neighbors with five countries. The longest borders with Iraq and Turkey are in the east and north. In the south and southwest, it borders on Jordan, Israel and Lebanon. The nearest major sea island is Cyprus.

Relief

Includes mountain ranges, deserts and gentle plains. The southwestern part lies on a hill. The coastal zone consists of soft hills descending to the seashore. This zone is considered the most fertile and densely populated due to the quality of soils and the presence of precipitation.

Mountains are represented by chains Jebel Ansaria, Anti-Lebanon And Jebel al-Zawiya. Between them stretched a vast valley Al Ghab with rich black earth soils. It flows here largest river Orontes. All mountain ranges gently descend in an easterly direction inland and smoothly flow into desert lands.

The eastern plateau consists of low mountains and alternating sand hills. Deserts in the north, northeast and south Homs And Hamad.

To the southeast is the fertile Jazira region, bordering Iraq. The Euphrates River flows here, cereals are grown. The discovered reserves of natural gas and oil are of economic importance.

Water resources

There are relatively few rivers and lakes in the vast territory of Syria. The map of Syria in Russian allows you to see the following objects:

• River Euphrates. It flows from north to south from Turkey to Iraq through the whole country;
• Tabqa Dam on the Euphrates in Jazira, with an area of ​​about 640 km²;
• Barada River. Drains from Anti-Lebanon and disappears into the sand dunes;
• Orontes River in the West;
• Mediterranean Sea in the West.

Climate

The weather is dry almost all year round. Most of Syria receives less than 25mm of rain in 12 months. It rains in the west, southeast, occasionally in other areas. January is the coldest month in winter. The thermometer sets the temperature to 7-10°C. In summer, the hottest time is July. The average temperature is 26-30°C. The natural maximum is fixed at around 45°C, the minimum is 2°C.

Nature

The fauna is relatively poor. Among the typical representatives of the animal world there are antelopes, foxes, wild boars, jackals. Hares, hyenas come across. Two species of animals that live only in the Middle Eastern lands are noteworthy:

1. Syrian Brown bear . Small, coffee color. There are only 150 individuals;
2. Syrian hamster. The rodent lives near Aleppo, Turkey. Demanded as a pet.

Storks and herons winter here.

IN flora Aleppo pine stands out with a limited habitat. Citrus trees, grapes, figs, olive trees grow well on fertile lands. Greenery is mainly represented by cypress, plane tree, ficus, magnolia, laurel. There are very few beech and cedar forests. In the deserts, flora characteristic of the arid climate grows: saxaul, thorns, tamarisk.

Map of Syria with cities. Administrative division of the country

The country is divided into 14 governorates or territorial units. Each region is governed by a local parliament. It is noteworthy that Quneitra Governorate is annexed by Israel and partially controlled by the UN. In total, there are about 90 large cities and almost 6.5 thousand small settlements in the country.

A map of Syria with cities in Russian allows you to see several large urban centers:

• Aleppo. The largest city in Syria, in the most populated governorate. Located in the northwest, 120 km from the sea. One of the fastest growing Middle Eastern cities. The city has been known since the 6th millennium BC;
• Damascus. The capital of Syria is the oldest state center in the world. It ranks second in size, following Aleppo. It is located in the southwestern part of the country, near the eastern Lebanese ranges, on the Barada River.
• Hama. Built on the banks of the Orontes River, in the center of Syria. An important industrial center of the state. Fifth largest. It has a vast area of ​​black earth. It is famous for its mild Mediterranean climate.

Despite the youth of the state, the territory is famous ancient history. Its age exceeds 8 thousand years. It was here that the main biblical events took place. On this land, the paths of the three main world religions intersect: Christianity, Judaism and Islam. It is this factor that has played and still plays a huge role in the life of every Syrian.