Flag of Syria
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| Use | National flag and ensign |
|---|---|
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | 22 February 1958, abandoned on 28 September 1961; readopted on 30 March 1980 |
| Design | A horizontal tricolour of red, white, and black; charged with two green stars at the centre. |
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| Name | "Independence flag" |
|---|---|
| Use | National flag and ensign |
| Proportion | 2:3 |
| Adopted | Originally in 1932 with 1:2 aspect ratio, was readopted in 1961. Adopted with 2:3 aspect ratio in 2012 by opposition government-in-exile (sometimes the original 1:2 aspect ratio flag is used unofficially) |
| Design | A horizontal tricolor triband of green, white, and black, with three red stars charged in the center. |
As a result of the ongoing Syrian civil war, there are currently two governments claiming to be the de jure government of Syria, using different flags to represent the state. The incumbent government, led by Bashar al-Assad and the Ba'ath Party, is using the red-white-black United Arab Republic flag in use since 1980; while the Syrian Interim Government, led by the Syrian National Coalition – seeking to overthrow the Assad government – readopted the green-white-black Independence flag in 2012.
The current flag was first adopted in 1958 to represent Syria as part of the United Arab Republic, and was used until 1961. It was readopted in 1980. Since its first adoption, variations of the red-white-black flag have been used in various Arab Unions of Syria with Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Yemen and Iraq. Although Syria is not part of any Arab state union, the flag of the United Arab Republic was readopted to show Syria's commitment to Arab unity. The usage of the flag has become disputed because it is often associated with the Ba'ath Party and has come to represent parties loyal to Assad's government in the Syrian civil war.
The Syrian flag is described in Article 6 of the Syrian Constitution. The first paragraph of the Article states:
The flag of the Syrian Arab Republic consists of three colours: red, white and black, with two green stars, of five angles each. The flag is rectangular, with its width measuring two thirds of its length. It is divided into three rectangles of identical dimensions and have the same length as the flag. The upper one is red, the middle being white and the bottom one is black, with the two green stars in the middle of the white rectangle.
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Wikipedia