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Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, Syria was administered by the French until independence in 1946. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. Since 1976, Syrian troops have been stationed in Lebanon, ostensibly in a peacekeeping capacity. In recent years, Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over the return of the Golan Heights.
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Country
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Surface Area: 185,180 square km
Population: 18,016,874; in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2004 est.)
Located in: Asia (Middle East)
Capital City: Damascus
Head of State: Bashar al-ASAD
Prime Minister: Muhammad Naji al-UTRI
Independent since: 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Currency: Syrian pound (SYP)
Flag (image): 
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