Syrian IDN launched

The Syrian National Commission for Network Services (NCNS) has begun using a new country-specific top-level domain (CTLD) written in Arabic script. NCNS General Manager Maher Suleiman told the Arab News Agency in Syria (NASA) that ICANN has granted permission to administer the Arabic-language domain in Syria (سورية).

Syria is the seventh country in the Arab region to begin using IDNs. Currently, IDNs are used by countries such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, Qatar, and Tunisia. Potential IDN users include Oman, Morocco, Iran, and Algeria.

According to Roab Dians, an intellectual property specialist at Clyde & Co, a leading international law firm, the launch of Arabic domain names in seven countries is the best evidence of the demand for Arabic-language trademarks and the importance of protecting them. He notes that there is currently very little information about other Middle Eastern countries seeking to use domains with elements of the national alphabet (IDN). The firm believes this will change as these countries develop.

As a reminder, ICANN previously allocated a national domain with characters from the Georgian national alphabet – .გე.