The Arab Socialist Movement ( ar, حركة الاشتراكيين العرب , rtl=yes- ) also known as Arab Socialist Party, was a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

that has split into several factions since the 1960s which continue to use the same name.

History

The Arab Socialist Movement traced its roots back to the "Youth Party", a 1930s radical anti-

capitalist Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...

pan-Arab Pan-Arabism ( ar, الوحدة العربية or ) is an ideology that espouses the unification of the countries of North Africa and Western Asia from the Atlantic Ocean to the Arabian Sea, which is referred to as the Arab world. It is closely c ...

group led by Othman al-Hawrani. In its later form, it was formally established as "Arab Socialist Party" in the 1950s, and was led by

Akram al-Hawrani Akram Al-Hourani ( ar, أَكْرَم الْحَوْرَانِي, ʾAkram al-Ḥawrānī, also transcribed El-Hourani, Howrani or Hurani) (November 1911 – 24 February 1996), was a Syrian politician who played a prominent role during the democrat ...

from then on. The party merged with the

Ba'ath Party The Arab Socialist Baʿath Party ( ar, حزب البعث العربي الاشتراكي ' ) was a political party founded in Syria by Mishel ʿAflaq, Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Bītār, and associates of Zaki al-ʾArsūzī. The party espoused ...

in 1953, only to withdraw again in 1963. It then split into several factions: * One faction, known as Damascus branch and headed by Abdul-Ghani Qannout, joined the

-led National Progressive Front government in 1972 and has continued to support the

al-Assad family The al-Assad family ( ar, عَائِلَة الْأَسَد '), also known as the Assad dynasty, has ruled Syria since General Hafez al-Assad became President of Syria in 1971 under the Ba'ath Party. After his death, in June 2000, he was succee ...

's rule in Syria ever since. It is active in Syria and

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus lie ...

. After Abdul-Ghani Qannout died in 2001, Ahmad al-Ahmad became the new secretary general; under him, the party continued its pro-government course, even during the Syrian Civil War. Amid the conflict's civil uprising phase, the Arab Socialist Movement's Damascus branch organised pro-government rallies. When the uprising escalated into a full insurgency, members of the party organised pro-government militias. Assistant secretary general Omar Adnan al-Alawi headed the

National Defence Forces The National Defence Forces (NDF) ( ar, قوات الدفاع الوطني ''Quwāt ad-Difāʿ al-Watanī'') is a pro-government militia, that was formed on 1 November 2012 and organized by the Syrian government during the Syrian Civil War as a ...

' Deir ez-Zor branch during part of the

Siege of Deir ez-Zor (2014–17) A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...

, and was wounded in combat. Al-Alawi later aided a member of the party's political office, Turki Albu Hamad, in founding the " Forces of the Fighters of the Tribes" militia. Ahmad al-Ahmad died on 25 August 2016, leaving the office of secretary general vacant until the election of Omar al-Alawi as official party head on 24 May 2017. * Another splinter group was led by the former officer Abdul-Ghani Ayyash (died 2010), and joined the opposition in form of the National Democratic Rally. * One faction of

Marxists Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialectical ...

, led by Akram al-Bunni, split off and formed the "National Council of Damascus Declaration for National Democratic Change", which was suppressed by the Assad government. *Another branch has also gained legal recognition and parliamentary representation in Syria, but under the name "

National Vow Movement The National Covenant Party ( ar, حركة العهد الوطني - ''Haraka al-'ahd al-waTani'') is a political party in Syria. It is part of the National Progressive Front of parties which support the orientation of the ruling Ba'ath Party. Th ...

References

Bibliography

* * 1950 establishments in Syria Arab nationalism in Syria Arab socialist political parties Ba'ath Party breakaway groups Political parties established in 1950 Political parties in Syria Secularism in Syria Socialist parties in Syria {{Syria-party-stub de:Arabische Sozialistische Bewegung