courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

National holiday: National Day, 17 April (1946)

Executive branch: president, three vice presidents, prime minister,
three deputy prime ministers, Council of Ministers (cabinet)

Legislative branch: unicameral People's Council (Majlis ash Shaab)

Judicial branch: Supreme Constitutional Court, High Judicial
Council, Court of Cassation, State Security Courts

Leaders:
Chief of State--President Lt. Gen. Hafiz al-ASSAD (since 22 February
1971); Vice Presidents Abd al-Halim KHADDAM, Dr. Rifat al-ASSAD, and
Muhammad Zuhayr MASHARIQA (since 11 March 1984);

Head of Government--Prime Minister Mahmud ZUBI (since 1 November 1987);
Deputy Prime Minister Lt. Gen. Mustafa TALAS (since 11 March 1984)

Political parties and leaders: ruling party is the Arab Socialist
Resurrectionist (Bath) Party; the Progressive National Front is dominated by
Bathists but includes independents and members of the Syrian Arab Socialist
Party (ASP), Arab Socialist Union (ASU), Socialist Unionist Movement, and Syrian
Communist Party (SCP)

Suffrage: universal at age 18

Elections:
President--last held 10-11 February 1985 (next to be held February
1992);
results--President Hafiz al-Assad was reelected without opposition;

People's Council--last held 10-11 February 1986 (next to be
held 22 May 1990);
results--Bath 66%, ASU 5%, SCP 5%, Socialist Unionist Movement 4%,
ASP 2%, independents 18%;
seats--(195 total) Bath 129, Communist 9, ASU 9, Socialiist Unionist
Movement 8, ASP 5, independents 35; the People's Council will have
250 seats total in the 22 May 1990 election

Communists: mostly sympathizers, numbering about 5,000

Other political or pressure groups: non-Bath parties have little
effective political influence; Communist party ineffective; greatest threat to
Assad regime lies in factionalism in the military; conservative religious
leaders; Muslim Brotherhood

Member of: Arab League, CCC, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA,
IDB--Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
IOOC, IPU, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNESCO,
UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WSG, WTO

Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Walid Mu'allim;
Chancery at 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202)
232-6313;
US--Ambassador Edward P. DJEREJIAN; Embassy at Abu Rumaneh,
Al Mansur Street No.2, Damascus (mailing address is P. O. Box 29, Damascus);
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