The Assadist-Saddamist conflict, also known as the Ba'ath Party intraconflict, refers to the conflict between the Assadist Syrian-led Ba'ath Party and its subgroups, and the Saddamist Iraqi-led Ba'ath Party and its subgroups.
| Assadist-Saddamist conflict | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||
| Belligerents | |||||
|
Assadists
Supported by:  Soviet Union Iraqi Shia militias Russia PLO (factions)PFLP  DFLP Ansar Allah |
Saddamists
Supported by:  United States (until 1991) Saudi Arabia (until 1991) Kuwait (until 1991) Lebanese Forces IMS Free Syrian Army PLO (factions) | ||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||
 Hafez al-Assad Bashar al-Assad Maher al-Assad Hassan Turkmani Assef Shawkat |
 Saddam Hussein Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri Tariq Aziz Ali Hassan al-Majid Salah Al-Mukhtar Raghad Hussein | ||||
History
editThe conflict emerged after the Ba'ath Party split into two factions, that of Syria and that of Iraq, following the 1966 Syrian coup d'état where Michel Aflaq and Salah al-Din al-Bitar were overthrown by Hafez al-Assad and Salah Jadid. In the 1970s, the two Ba'athist parties managed to reconcile, although the conflict erupted again as a result of the 1979 Ba'ath Party Purge in Iraq.[1][2]
In 1980, when Saddam Hussein invaded Iran, leading to the Iran-Iraq war, the Syrian Ba'ath chose to ally with Iran. This began a Syrian Baathist alliance with Shia Islamists, and an Iraqi Baathist alliance with the West and Sunni Islamists. Despite the Baath Party as a whole claiming to be secular, the conflict is partially rooted in sectarianism as the Iraqi Baath party was led by Sunnis, while the Syrian Baath party was led by Alawites.[3] The Iraqi Baath Party supported the Muslim Brotherhood in their revolt against the Syrian Baath.[4]
In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait. After United Nations Security Council authorization, Syria joined the coalition that liberated Kuwait from Iraqi occupation in the 1991 Gulf War. Syria broke relations after Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990 and joined other Arab states in sending military forces to the coalition that forced Iraq out of Kuwait. However by 1997, Syrian president Hafez al-Assad began reestablishing relations with Iraqi president Saddam Hussein.[5] Hafez died in 2000 and Iraq sent Vice President Taha Muhie-eldin Marouf to attend the state funeral. The ascendance of Bashar al-Assad in 2000 boosted this process.[6] Under Bashar, Syria ignored the sanctions against Iraq and assisted Iraq to illegally import oil.[7]
In 2003, the United States invaded Iraq and removed the Saddamists from power, leaving the Syrian Arab Republic as the only remaining Ba'athist state.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Batatu, Hanna (1999). Syria's Peasantry, the Descendants of Its Lesser Rural Notables, and Their Politics. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-00254-1.
- ^ Ehteshami, Anoushiravan; Hinnebusch, Raymond A. (2002). Syria and Iran: Middle Powers in a Penetrated Regional System. New York, USA: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-15675-0.
- ^ Nasr, Vali, The Shia Revival (Norton), 2006, p.154
- ^ "The Syrian Muslim Brotherhood". Cablegate. 26 February 1985. Archived from the original on 8 May 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
- ^ Mansour & Thompson 2020, p. 118.
- ^ Mansour & Thompson 2020, p. 117.
- ^ Harris 2012, p. 267.
Bibliography
edit- Harris, William W. (2012). Lebanon: A History, 600-2011. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780190217839.
- Mansour, Imad; Thompson, William R. (2020). Shocks and Rivalries in the Middle East and North Africa. Georgetown University Press. ISBN 9781626167681.