Editing Syrian Armed Forces (section)

==History==
===From Mandate to Independence (1923–1945)===
The [[French Mandate]] volunteer force, which would later become the Syrian army, was established in 1923 with the threat of [[Arab nationalism|Syrian Arab nationalism]] in mind. Although the unit's officers were originally all French, it was, in effect, the first indigenous modern Syrian army. In 1925, this force was expanded and designated the [[Army of the Levant|Special Troops of the Levant]] (Troupes Spéciales du Levant). In 1941, during the [[World War II|Second World War]], the Army of the Levant participated in a futile resistance to the [[Syria–Lebanon Campaign]], the British and [[Free French]] invasion that ousted the [[Vichy French]] from Syria.

After the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] takeover, the army came under the control of the Free French and was designated the [[Army of the Levant|Levantine Forces]] (Troupes du Levant).{{sfn|Sinai|1987|page=190}} French Mandate authorities maintained a [[gendarmerie]] to police Syria's vast rural areas. This paramilitary force was used to combat criminals and political foes of the Mandate government. As with the Levantine Special Troops, French officers held the top posts, but as [[Evacuation Day (Syria)|Syrian independence]] approached, the ranks below major were gradually filled by Syrian officers who had graduated from the [[Homs Military Academy]], which had been established by the French during the 1930s. In 1938, the Troupes Spéciales numbered around 10,000 men and 306 officers (of whom 88 were French, mainly in the higher ranks). A majority of the Syrian troops were of rural background and minority ethnic origin, mainly [[Alawites|Alawis]], [[Druze]]s, [[Kurd]]s and [[Circassians]]. By the end of 1945, the army numbered about 5,000 and the gendarmerie some 3,500. In April 1946, the last French officers were forced to leave Syria due to sustained resistance offensives; the Levantine Forces then became the regular armed forces of the newly independent state and grew rapidly to about 12,000 by the time of the 1948 Arab−Israeli War, the first of four Arab−Israeli wars involving Syria between 1948 and 1986.{{sfn|Sinai|1987}}

===First and Second Republic (1946–1963)===
[[File:Syria-flag 1932-58 1961-63.svg|thumb|Flag of the Syrian Republic (1932–1958), and again from 1961 to 1963]]
The Syrian Armed Forces fought in the [[1948 Arab–Israeli War]] (against Israel) and were involved in some [[military coup]]s. Between 1948 and 1967, a series of coups destroyed the stability of the government and any remaining professionalism within the armed forces.{{sfn|Pollack|2002}} In March 1949, the chief of staff, Gen. [[Husni al-Za'im]], installed himself as president. Two more military dictators followed by December 1949. Gen. [[Adib Shishakli]] then held power until deposed in the [[1954 Syrian coup d'etat]]. Further coups followed, each attended by a purge of the officer corps to remove supporters of the losers from the force.{{sfn|Pollack|2002|p=457–458}}
[[File:Flag of the United Arab Republic.svg|thumb|Flag of the [[United Arab Republic]] (1958–1961) and again of the Arab Republic of Syria from 1980 to 2024]]
The Syrian armed forces were part of the [[Armed Forces of the United Arab Republic]] between 1958 and 1961. Some Syrian ground forces formed the [[First Army (United Arab Republic)]] while the Second and Third Armies were established by the Egyptian half of the unified state.

=== Ba'athist Syria (1963–2024) ===
{{main|Syrian Arab Armed Forces}}
In 1963, the Military Committee of the [[Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syria Region|Syrian Regional Command]] of the [[Ba'ath Party|Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party]] spent most of its time planning to take power through a conventional military coup. From the very beginning, the Military Committee knew it had to capture [[al-Kiswah]] and [[Qatana]] two military camps and seize control of the 70th Armored Brigade at al-Kiswah, the Military Academy in the city of Homs and the Damascus radio station. While the conspirators of the Military Committee were all young, their aim was not out of reach; the sitting regime had been slowly disintegrating and the traditional elite had lost effective political power over the country.{{sfn|Seale|1990|p=72}} A small group of military officers, including [[Hafez al-Assad]], seized control in the [[8th of March Revolution|March 1963 Syrian coup d'etat]]. Following the coup, Gen. [[Amin al-Hafiz]] discharged many ranking Sunni officers, thereby, [[Stratfor]] says, "providing openings for hundreds of [[Alawites]] to fill top-tier military positions during the 1963–1965 period on the grounds of being opposed to Arab unity. This measure tipped the balance in favor of Alawite officers who staged a coup in 1966 and, for the first time, placed Damascus in the hands of the Alawites."<ref name=Bhalla>{{cite web|last=Bhalla|first=Reva|title=Making Sense of the Syrian Crisis|url=http://www.stratfor.com/weekly/20110504-making-sense-syrian-crisis?elq=2ef73758a9434404bd465acd3490d5fe#ixzz1LTPFUuuw|publisher=[[Stratfor]]|access-date=9 May 2011|date=5 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009214700/https://www.stratfor.com/weekly/20110504-making-sense-syrian-crisis?elq=2ef73758a9434404bd465acd3490d5fe#ixzz1LTPFUuuw|archive-date=9 October 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Armed Forces were involved in the 1967 [[Six-Day War]] (against Israel). Since 1967, most of the [[Golan Heights]] territory of southwestern Syria has been under Israeli occupation. They then fought in the late 1960s [[War of Attrition]] (against Israel) and the 1970 [[Black September in Jordan#Syrian intervention attempt|Black September]] invasion of Jordan.

When Hafez al-Assad came to power in 1971, the army began to modernize and change. In the first 10 years of Assad's rule, the army increased by 162%, and by 264% by 2000. At one point, 70% of the country's annual budget spend only to the army.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reich |first=Bernard |title=Political Leaders of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa: A Biographical Dictionary. |date=1990 |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]] |isbn=978-0-313-26213-5}}</ref> At the beginning of the [[Yom Kippur War]] of 1973, the Syrian Army launched an attack to seize the Golan Heights that was only narrowly repulsed by two vastly outnumbered Israeli brigades. Since 1973 the [[cease-fire]] line has been respected by both sides, with very few incidents until the [[Syrian civil war]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/03/israel-deploys-artillery-after-golan-blast-2014318173434341989.html |title=Israel bombs Syria's Golan after blast |publisher=[[Al Jazeera English]] |access-date=20 March 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/syrian-missiles-fired-israeli-jets-struck-syria-050954013.html |title=Syria fires missiles at Israeli jets after airstrikes |publisher=Yahoo! News |author=Ian Deitch |date=17 March 2017 |agency=[[Associated Press]] |archive-date=25 July 2018 |access-date=23 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180725214426/https://www.yahoo.com/news/syrian-missiles-fired-israeli-jets-struck-syria-050954013.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Syria was invited into Lebanon by that country's president in 1976, to intervene on the side of the Lebanese government against [[PLO]] guerilla and Lebanese Christian forces. The [[Arab Deterrent Force]] originally consisted of a Syrian core, up to 25,000 troops, with participation by some other [[Arab League]] states totaling only around 5,000 troops.<ref>{{cite book |last=Weisburd |first=Arthur |author-link= |date=1997 |title=Use of force: the practice of states since World War II |url= |location= |publisher=Penn State Press |page=156 |isbn=9780271016801}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/12663376 |title=The Current legal regulation of the use of force |date=1986 |publisher=M. Nijhoff |others=Antonio Cassese |isbn=90-247-3247-6 |location=Dordrecht, The Netherlands |pages=195–197 |oclc=12663376}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Thompson |first=Eric V. |date=2002 |title=Will Syria Have to Withdraw from Lebanon? |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4329721 |journal=Middle East Journal |volume=56 |issue=1 |pages=72–93, 76 |jstor=4329721 |issn=0026-3141}}</ref> In late 1978, after the Arab League had extended the mandate of the Arab Deterrent Force, the [[Sudan]]ese, the Saudis and the [[United Arab Emirates]] announced intentions to withdraw troops from Lebanon, extending their stay into the early months of 1979 at the Lebanese government's request.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/12663376 |title=The Current legal regulation of the use of force |date=1986 |publisher=M. Nijhoff |others=Antonio Cassese |isbn=90-247-3247-6 |location=Dordrecht, The Netherlands |pages=196–197 |oclc=12663376}}</ref> The Libyan troops were essentially abandoned and had to find their way home (if at all), and the ADF thereby became a purely Syrian force (which did include the [[Palestinian Liberation Army]] (PLA)).<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/12663376 |title=The Current legal regulation of the use of force |date=1986 |publisher=M. Nijhoff |others=Antonio Cassese |isbn=90-247-3247-6 |location=Dordrecht, The Netherlands |pages=192–197 |oclc=12663376}}</ref>

A year after Israel invaded and occupied [[Southern Lebanon]] during the [[1982 Lebanon War]], the Lebanese government failed to extend the ADF's mandate, thereby effectively ending its existence, although not the Syrian or Israeli military presence in Lebanon.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/12663376 |title=The Current legal regulation of the use of force |date=1986 |publisher=M. Nijhoff |others=Antonio Cassese |isbn=90-247-3247-6 |location=Dordrecht, The Netherlands |pages=198–201 |oclc=12663376}}</ref> Eventually the Syrian presence became known as the [[Syrian occupation of Lebanon]].

===Occupation of Lebanon (1982–2005)===
{{Main|Syrian occupation of Lebanon}}
Syrian forces, still technically known as the Arab Deterrent Force, lingered in Lebanon throughout the [[Lebanese civil war]] (1975–90). Eventually, the Syrians brought most of the nation under their control as part of a power struggle with Israel, which had occupied areas of southern Lebanon in 1978. In 1985, Israel began to withdraw from Lebanon, as a result of domestic opposition to Israel and international pressure.<ref>{{cite news |last=Friedman |first=Thomas |date=May 26, 1985 |title=LEGACY OF WAR; ISRAEL MAKES A BITTER DEAL, NEW BATTLE JOLTS LEBANON |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/05/26/weekinreview/legacy-of-war-israel-makes-a-bitter-deal-new-battle-jolts-lebanon.html |work=NY Times |location= |access-date=May 23, 2021}}</ref> In the aftermath of this withdrawal, the [[War of the Camps]] broke out, with Syria fighting their former Palestinian allies. Following the end of the Lebanese civil war in 1990, the [[Syrian occupation of Lebanon]] continued until they were also forced out by widespread public protest and international pressure. About 20,000 Syrian soldiers were deployed in Lebanon until 27 April 2005, when the last of Syria's troops left the country.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2005/mar/05/syria.lebanon|title=Assad announces Lebanon troop withdrawal|date=March 5, 2005|publisher=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=May 23, 2021}}</ref> Syrian forces were accused of involvement in the murder of [[Rafiq al-Hariri]], as well as continued meddling in Lebanese affairs, and an international investigation into the Hariri killing and several subsequent bomb attacks has been launched by the UN.

===Other engagements===
Engagements since 1979 included the Muslim Brotherhood insurgency (1979–82), notably including the [[1982 Hama massacre|Hama massacre]], the [[1982 Lebanon War]] (against Israel) and the dispatch of the [[9th Armoured Division (Syria)|9th Armored Division]] to Saudi Arabia in 1990–91, ahead of the [[Gulf War]] against Iraq. The 9th Armored Division served as the Arab Joint Forces Command North reserve and saw little action.{{sfn|Schwarzkopf|1993|p=467–469}} Syria's force numbered ~20,000 in strength (the sixth-largest contingent) and its involvement was justified domestically as an effort to defend Saudi Arabia. Syria's initial involvement in [[Operation Desert Shield]] also rolled into the Allied [[Operation Desert Storm]], as Syrian forces did participate in helping dislodge and drive Iraqi forces out of [[Kuwait City]]. The total losses sustained were two dead and one wounded. There were indications the Syrian government had been prepared to double its force to 40,000.<ref>{{cite news|title=AFTER THE WAR; Syria Plans to Double Gulf Force |newspaper=[[New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/27/world/after-the-war-syria-plans-to-double-gulf-force.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011033541/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/03/27/world/after-the-war-syria-plans-to-double-gulf-force.html |archivedate=11 October 2017 |date=March 27, 1991|first=Judith|last=Miller|authorlink=Judith Miller}}</ref>

===Modernisation===
{{Further|Russia–Syria relations#Arms contracts}}
In recent years Syria has relied on Russian arms purchases to obtain modern weapons. Purchases included anti-tank and air defense systems. In early September 2008 the Syrian government ordered [[MiG-29SMT]] fighters,<ref>{{cite news|last=Katz|first=Yaakov|title=Russia confirms MiG jet sale to Syria|url=http://www.jpost.com/home/article.aspx?id=153730|newspaper=[[The Jerusalem Post]]|date=3 September 2009}}</ref> [[Pantsir-S1|Pantsir S1E air-defence systems]], [[9K720 Iskander|Iskander tactical missile systems]], [[Yakovlev Yak-130|Yak-130]] aircraft, and two [[Amur class|Amur-1650]] submarines from Russia. Russia's Foreign Minister [[Sergei Lavrov]] asserted that the sale wouldn't upset the balance of power in the Middle East and was "in line with . . . international law."

Russia aimed to turn the [[Russian naval base in Tartus]] into a permanent base. Israel and the US oppose further arms sales to Syria due to fears that the weapons could fall under the control of Iran or [[Hezbollah]] fighters in Lebanon.<ref>{{cite news|title=Russia defends arms sales to Syria|url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/09/29/Russia_defends_arms_sales_to_Syria/UPI-28611222726785/|newspaper=[[United Press International]]|date=29 September 2008|access-date=30 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110412103135/http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/09/29/Russia_defends_arms_sales_to_Syria/UPI-28611222726785/|archive-date=12 April 2011|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Syrian civil war (2011–2024) ===
[[File:VOA Arrott - A View of Syria, Under Government Crackdown 08.jpg|thumb|A Syrian soldier manning a checkpoint near Damascus.]]
Because of the violence against the people by the Syrian Army and the detention of a great number of people, some soldiers from different religions and sects (Sunni, Shia, Druze and Christian) defected in protest at orders to kill protesters in April 2011.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Syrian soldiers shot for refusing to fire on protesters |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=2011-04-12 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/apr/12/syrian-soldiers-shot-protest}}</ref> By 2014, the number of defecting officers had reached approximately 170,000, from different ranks. They formed the [[Free Syrian Army]] on 29 July 2011 (interview with Riad Al-Asaad - the founder and leader of the Free Syrian Army) and at the beginning of the conflict they depended on light weapons. The arming of the Free Syrian Army began in mid-2012.

In March 2012 the Syrian government issued new travel restrictions for military-aged males. Under the new restrictions, reported by [[Media of Syria|local Syrian news outlets]], all males between 18 and 42 were banned from traveling outside the country.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/0327/As-Syria-s-war-rages-Assad-bans-military-age-men-from-leaving|title=As Syria's war rages, Assad bans military-age men from leaving|author=David Enders|newspaper=[[The Christian Science Monitor]]|date=27 March 2012|access-date=24 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120622031012/http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2012/0327/As-Syria-s-war-rages-Assad-bans-military-age-men-from-leaving|archive-date=22 June 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> In a late June 2012 interview given by the FSA's ''[[Asharq Al-Awsat]]'' he claimed [[Riad al-Asaad]] said that about 20–30 Syrian officers defected to Turkey each day.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.nrg.co.il/online/1/ART2/380/846.html?hp=1&cat=669&loc=49|script-title=he:סוריה: התקפה עזה על המשמר הרפובליקני|publisher=[[Nrg Maariv|Maariv]]|date=26 June 2012|access-date=26 June 2012|location=Tel Aviv|language=he|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728154747/http://www.nrg.co.il/online/1/ART2/380/846.html?hp=1&cat=669&loc=49|archive-date=28 July 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On 18 July 2012 the Syrian Defense Minister [[Dawoud Rajha]], former defense minister [[Hasan Turkmani]] and the president's brother-in-law Gen. [[Assef Shawkat]] were killed in a [[July 2012 Damascus bombing|bomb attack]] in Damascus.<ref name=telegraph9408321>{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9408321/Assads-brother-in-law-and-top-Syrian-officials-killed-in-Damascus-suicide-bomb.html|title=Assad's brother-in-law and top Syrian officials killed in Damascus suicide bomb|author=Damien McElroy|date=18 July 2012|access-date=18 July 2012|newspaper=Daily Telegraph|location=London|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719162441/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/9408321/Assads-brother-in-law-and-top-Syrian-officials-killed-in-Damascus-suicide-bomb.html|archive-date=19 July 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Syrian intelligence chief [[Hisham Bekhityar]] and Head of the 4th Army Division Maher Al Assad—brother of President Assad—were also injured in the explosion.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-syria-crisis-bombing-claim-idUKBRE86H0FO20120718|title=Two Syrian rebel groups claim Damascus attack|date=18 July 2012|access-date=18 July 2012|work=[[Reuters]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719000456/http://uk.reuters.com/article/2012/07/18/uk-syria-crisis-bombing-claim-idUKBRE86H0FO20120718|archive-date=19 July 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Since the start of the [[conflict in Syria]], human rights groups say that the majority of abuses were committed by the Syrian government's forces, and UN investigations concluded that the government's abuses were the greatest in both gravity and scale.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/syria-crisis-un-rights-idUSL6E8JFA3220120815 |title=UPDATE 4-Syrian govt forces, rebels committing war crimes -U.N. |work=[[Reuters]] |access-date=17 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020163150/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/15/syria-crisis-un-rights-idUSL6E8JFA3220120815 |archive-date=20 October 2012 |url-status=live  }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/news/friends-syria-must-use-their-influence-stop-cycle-repression-and-violence-2012-07-05 |title=Friends of Syria must use their influence to stop cycle of repression and violence |date=5 July 2012 |publisher=[[Amnesty International]] |access-date=19 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121206063406/http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/friends-syria-must-use-their-influence-stop-cycle-repression-and-violence-2012-07-05 |archive-date=6 December 2012 |url-status=dead  }}</ref> The branches of the Syrian Armed Forces that committed war crimes include at least the Syrian Arab Army,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/31/opinion/ghitis-syria-killing-children |title=Why the Syrian regime is killing babies |publisher=[[CNN]] |access-date=3 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130822043336/http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/31/opinion/ghitis-syria-killing-children |archive-date=22 August 2013 |url-status=live  }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Syrian siege of Homs is genocidal, say trapped residents|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/feb/07/syrian-homs-siege-genocidal-say-residents|newspaper=[[The Guardian]]|date=7 February 2012|access-date=16 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170225225140/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/feb/07/syrian-homs-siege-genocidal-say-residents|archive-date=25 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Syrian Arab Air Force<ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2012/10/23/syria-despite-denials-more-cluster-bomb-attacks "Syria: Despite Denials, More Cluster Bomb Attacks"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161218123504/https://www.hrw.org/news/2012/10/23/syria-despite-denials-more-cluster-bomb-attacks |date=18 December 2016 }}. HRW.org. 23 October 2012.</ref> and the Syrian Military Intelligence.<ref name="HRW arch">{{Cite journal |title= Torture Archipelago: Arbitrary Arrests, Torture and Enforced Disappearances in Syria's Underground Prisons since March 2011 |url= https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/syria0712webwcover.pdf |publisher= Human Rights Watch |date= July 2012 |access-date= 3 July 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120725100639/http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/syria0712webwcover.pdf |archive-date= 25 July 2012 |url-status= live |df= dmy-all }}</ref> However the Syrian authorities denied these accusations<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/07/world/meast/syria-unrest/|title=Al-Assad denies responsibility for Syria crackdown|publisher=[[CNN]]|date=7 December 2011|access-date=23 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224102235/http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/07/world/meast/syria-unrest/|archive-date=24 December 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> and claimed that irregular armed groups with foreign support<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-syria-obama-order-idUSBRE8701OK20120801 |title= Exclusive: Obama authorizes secret U.S. support for Syrian rebels |work= [[Reuters]] |date= 1 August 2012 |access-date= 2 July 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120802002457/https://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/01/us-usa-syria-obama-order-idUSBRE8701OK20120801 |archive-date= 2 August 2012 |url-status= live |df= dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jun/22/saudi-arabia-syria-rebel-army |title= Saudi Arabia plans to fund Syria rebel army |newspaper= [[The Guardian]] |date= 22 June 2012 |access-date= 16 December 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161218142454/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jun/22/saudi-arabia-syria-rebel-army |archive-date= 18 December 2016 |url-status= live |df= dmy-all }}</ref> are behind the atrocities, including Al Qaeda linked Insurgents.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/19/al-qaida-linked-group-accused-torture-syria-amnesty |title= Al-Qaida-linked group accused of torture in areas of Syria it controls |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date= 18 May 2012 |access-date= 16 December 2016 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160722203723/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/19/al-qaida-linked-group-accused-torture-syria-amnesty |archive-date= 22 July 2016 |url-status= live |df= dmy-all }}</ref>

The numbers in the Syrian armed forces had reduced considerably during the Civil War, although estimates varied.
{{Bar chart
| title       = Syrian Armed Forces size during the Civil War<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Sep-19/271153-assads-army-stretched-but-still-seen-strong.ashx#axzz3E5YPzKAf|last=Sylvia|first=Westall|title=Assad's army stretched but still seen strong|newspaper=The Daily Star|access-date=23 September 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140922220210/http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Sep-19/271153-assads-army-stretched-but-still-seen-strong.ashx#axzz3E5YPzKAf|archive-date=22 September 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>
| bar_width   = 20
| width_units = em
| label_type  = Year
| label1  = 2011
| label2  = 2014
| data_type = Army personnel
| data_max  = 220,000
| data1 = 220,000
| data2  = 110,000
| col2_data_type = Air Force personnel
| col2_data_max  = 100,000
| col2_data1  = 100,000
| col2_data2  = 63,000
| col3_data_type = Total: Army + Air Force
| col3_data_max  = 330,000
| col3_data1  = 320,000
| col3_data2  = 173,000
}}
Russian sources gave higher estimates. In 2011, 300,000 reserves were reported in addition to regular forces.{{citation needed|date=February 2020}} In 2014, [[Gazeta.ru]] reported that the regular army had reduced from 325,000 to 150,000 due to "mortality, desertions and deviations", but that this was supplemented by 60,000 Republican Guards and 50,000 Kurdish militias.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gazeta.ru/politics/2015/09/30_a_7788269.shtml|title=Сколько людей и оружия по обе линии сирийского противостояния|work=Газета.Ru|access-date=20 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160731174449/http://www.gazeta.ru/politics/2015/09/30_a_7788269.shtml|archive-date=31 July 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2015, [[Life (news agency, Russia)|LifeNews]] still reported the same figures.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lifenews.ru/news/162802|title=LifeNews изучил состояние сирийской армии на момент введения ВКС РФ|date=1 October 2015|work=Life.ru|access-date=20 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127191935/http://lifenews.ru/news/162802|archive-date=27 January 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

Despite shrinking by nearly half from the 2011 beginning of the civil war by 2014, the Armed Forces became much more flexible and capable, especially in anti-guerilla warfare.<ref name="Adapts">{{cite news|url=http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Oct-22/274895-syria-army-adapts-to-guerrilla-war.ashx|title=Syria army adapts to guerrilla war|newspaper=The Daily Star|date=22 October 2014|access-date=22 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022063346/http://dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Oct-22/274895-syria-army-adapts-to-guerrilla-war.ashx|archive-date=22 October 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> Their ''modus operandi'' switched from traditional Soviet-modeled conventional military forces into a force of smaller groups fighting in close-quarters guerrilla combat with an increasing role for junior officers.<ref name="Adapts"/>

In September 2018, [[Statista]] Charts estimated that the Syrian military had lost 111 warplanes since the beginning of the civil war, including reconnaissance and attack drones. The Syrians lost most of their warplanes during the first four years of the war, with losses significantly decreasing after the [[Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War|Russian intervention]] into the war.<ref name="Statista Infographics 2018">{{cite web | title=Infographic: Aircraft Lost During The Syrian Civil War | website=Statista Infographics | date=18 September 2018 | url=https://www.statista.com/chart/15492/estimated-number-of-aircraft-shot-down-or-destroyed-in-accidents-in-syria/ | access-date=27 January 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105202612/https://www.statista.com/chart/15492/estimated-number-of-aircraft-shot-down-or-destroyed-in-accidents-in-syria/ | archive-date=5 November 2018 | url-status=live | df=dmy-all }}</ref> After the civil war Bashar Al-Assad made little efforts to rehabilitate the military from the losses sustained during the civil war. This was most likely not due to a lack of resources, but instead it was an active choice of the regime. This left the military weakened and suspectable to attacks, such as from [[Israel Syria relations|Israel]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Haddad |first=Bassam |date=2024-12-18 |title=The Runaway Dictator and prospects for resistance to foreign aggression |url=https://mondoweiss.net/2024/12/the-runaway-dictator-and-prospects-for-resistance-to-foreign-aggression/ |access-date=2025-03-28 |website=Mondoweiss |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Fall of the al-Assad regime===
In December 2024, the Syrian Arab Army, alongside the Syrian Arab Republic itself, collapsed as the [[Fall of the Assad regime|Assad regime fell]]. Some of the remaining SAA forces crossed into Iraq, others removed their uniforms before the rebels could arrive in Damascus, the last remaining territory controlled by the SAR.<ref name=":0" /> Retired U.S. General [[Wesley Clark]] said that a video showing the SAA forces evacuating to Iraq showed the "demoralization and collapse of an army", and that the forces knew they would lose, with the rebels taking Damascus and Assad's whereabouts unknown. He compared it to the [[fall of Kabul (2021)|fall of Kabul in 2021]], where the U.S.-backed [[Afghan Armed Forces]] collapsed, and that when faced with certain defeat, armies simply "melt away".<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/12/07/world/video/syria-pro-assad-forces-cross-to-iraq-nr-digvid |title=Video purportedly shows pro-Assad military fleeing into Iraq |date=2024-12-08 |language=en |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=[[CNN]]}}</ref>

{{As of|2024|12|11}}, leaders of the [[Syrian Democratic Forces]], the military forces of the [[Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria]], were preparing for "negotiations that would create a broader-based Syrian government that is not under [[Abu Mohammad al-Julani|al-Julani]]'s control". Leaders of the [[Southern Operations Room]] met with al-Julani on 11 December and expressed interest in "coordination", a "unified effort" and "cooperation", without stating that they would support the HTS transitional government.<ref name="ISW_IR_update_11Dec2024">{{cite Q|Q131451072|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 17 December 2024, Prime Minister Mohammed Al-Bashir has said the [[Ministry of Defense (Syria)|defense ministry]] would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from Assad's army.<ref name="arabnews20241217">{{Cite web|url=https://www.arabnews.com/node/2583377/middle-east|title=France returns flag to Damascus embassy as new Syria authorities build contacts with West|date=17 December 2024|website=Arab News}}</ref> [[Murhaf Abu Qasra]] (''nom de guerre''; Abu Hassan al-Hamawi),<ref name="france24-20241217">{{Cite web |date=17 December 2024 |title=Syria ex-rebel military chief says to dissolve armed wing |url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20241217-syria-ex-rebel-military-chief-says-to-dissolve-armed-wing |access-date=21 December 2024 |website=France 24 |language=en}}</ref> the military commander of [[Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham]] said to ''[[The Economist]]'', "All military units will naturally transition to the ministry of defence, forming a unified army tasked with protecting the nation on behalf of all Syrians." ''The Economist'' added that Qasra insisted "..that there will be no place in the new Syria for jihadists eager to launch attacks".<ref>{{Cite news |title=An interview with the military commander of Syria's new masters |url=https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/12/13/an-interview-with-the-military-commander-of-syrias-new-masters |access-date=21 December 2024 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613}}</ref> Abu Qasra, speaking with [[Agence France-Presse|''AFP'']], said that HTS would be "among the first to take the initiative" to dissolve its armed wing for a national army;<ref name="france24-20241217" /> on 21 December it was reported that Abu Qasra was appointed transitional [[Ministry of Defense (Syria)|Minister of Defense]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Syrian authorities appoint HTS figures as foreign, defence ministers |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/21/syrias-new-rulers-appoint-hts-figures-as-foreign-defence-ministers |access-date=25 December 2024 |website=[[Al Jazeera English]]|language=en}}</ref>

On 22 December 2024, [[Ahmed al-Sharaa]] said that the new Syrian government would announce the new structure of the Syrian military within days.<ref>{{cite news |title=Syrian leader says he will announce defence, military structure soon |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syrian-leader-says-he-will-announce-defence-military-structure-soon-2024-12-22/ |work=[[Reuters]] |date=22 December 2024}}</ref> Two days later, the transitional government announced that a meeting between opposition groups and Ahmed al-Sharaa "ended in an agreement on the dissolution of all the groups and their integration under the supervision of the ministry of defence".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Syria says ex-rebel groups agree to integrate under Defence Ministry |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/12/24/syria-says-ex-rebel-groups-agree-to-integrate-under-defence-ministry |access-date=25 December 2024 |website=[[Al Jazeera English]] |language=en}}</ref>{{sfn|Straits Times|2024}}

On 26 December 2024, the "former forces of deposed leader Bashar al-Assad" killed 14 HTS fighters in the process of the HTS/new government capturing [[Mohammad Kanjo Hassan]]. General Hassan, the former chief of military justice and head of the field court, had been closely associated with the [[Sednaya Prison]], where detainees had been often been brutally tortured. This has led to the [[Western Syria clashes (December 2024–present)]] against the new [[Syrian caretaker government|Syrian transitional government]]/regime.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/26/middleeast/security-personnel-deaths-syria-intl-hnk/index.html | title=At least 14 security personnel killed in 'ambush' by former Assad forces, new Syrian authorities say | website=[[CNN]] | date=26 December 2024}}</ref>

On 29 December 2024, [[Ahmed al-Sharaa]] announced the [[Military ranks of Syria|promotion]] of 42 individuals to the rank of Colonel, 5 to the rank of Brigadier General, and 2 to the rank of Major-General in the [[Syrian Army]]. This number included Defense Minister Abu Qasra and new [[Chief of the General Staff (Syria)|Chief of the General Staff]] of the Syrian Armed Forces and Army [[Ali Noureddine Al-Naasan]], who were both elevated to the rank of Major-General.<ref>{{Cite web |title=بينهم وزير الدفاع.. القيادة العامة تعلن عن ترقيات جديدة في الجيش السوري |url=https://shaam.org/news/syria-news/بينهم-وزير-الدفاع-القيادة-العامة-تعلن-عن-ترقيات-جديدة-في-الجيش-السوري |access-date=29 December 2024 |website=شبكة شام |language=ar}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=29 December 2024 |title=الشرع يصدر أول قائمة ترفيعات في الجيش.. ضمت أسماء غير سورية |url=https://arabi21.com/story/1650927/الشرع-يصدر-أول-قائمة-ترفيعات-في-الجيش-ضمت-أسماء-غير-سورية |access-date=29 December 2024 |website=عربي21 |language=ar}}</ref> In January 2025 the defense ministry said that it has met with over 60 armed groups and claimed that all of the armed groups agreed to be a part of the armed forces and reorganized into units.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Institute for the Study of War |url=https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/iran-update-january-19-2025 |access-date=2025-01-20 |website=Institute for the Study of War |language=en}}</ref> but they reject the SDF proposal of creating a Kurdish "bloc" within the armed forces.<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 19, 2025 |title=Syrian defence minister rejects Kurdish proposal for its own military bloc |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/syrian-defence-minister-rejects-kurdish-proposal-its-own-military-bloc-2025-01-19/ |website=[[Reuters]]}}</ref> Later in February the SDF, the [[Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria]], and the [[Syrian Democratic Council]] decided in a meeting that the SDF would merge with the Syrian army.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-02-18 |title=SDF says it will be joining the Syrian army |url=https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-kurdish-sdf-says-it-will-be-joining-the-syrian-army/7980107.html |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Voice of America |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Sh |date=2025-02-18 |title=The View from Damascus – SDF Seeks Integration into Syrian Army as Talks with Damascus Gain Momentum - The Syrian Observer |url=https://syrianobserver.com/syrian-actors/the-view-from-damascus-sdf-seeks-integration-into-syrian-army-as-talks-with-damascus-gain-momentum.html |access-date=2025-02-22 |language=en-US}}</ref>

On 8 March 2025, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that Syrian security forces and pro-government fighters had been involved in the mass killings of more than 750 Alawite civilians amidst clashes with supposed remaining pro-Assad groups in the western Governorates of Syria.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.sky.com/story/they-left-nobody-more-than-600-people-killed-in-some-of-syrias-deadliest-violence-13324440|title='They left nobody': More than 1,000 people killed in some of Syria's deadliest violence|website=[[Sky News]]}}</ref>