Editing Ba'ath Party (section)

===Syria===
{{Main|Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syria Region}}
Syrian politics took a dramatic turn in 1954 when the military government of [[Adib Shishakli]] was overthrown and the democratic system restored. The Ba'ath, now a large and popular organisation, won 15 out of 142 parliamentary seats in the [[1954 Syrian parliamentary election|Syrian election]] that year, becoming the second-largest party in parliament. Aside from the [[Syrian Communist Party]] (SCP), the Ba'ath Party was the only party able to organise mass protests among workers.{{sfn|Peretz|1994|p=413}} The party was supported by the [[intelligentsia]] due to their pro-Egyptian and [[Anti-imperialism|anti-imperialist]] stance along with their advocation of social reform.{{sfn|Finer|Stanley|2009|p=149}}

The Ba'ath faced considerable competition from ideological competitors, notably the [[Syrian Social Nationalist Party]] (SSNP), which supported the establishment of a [[Syria (region)|Greater Syria]]. The Ba'ath Party's main adversary was the SCP, whose support for class struggle and internationalism was anathema to the Ba'ath.{{sfn|Federal Research Division|2004|p=211}} In addition to parliamentary-level competition, all these parties (as well as [[Islamism|Islamists]]) competed in street-level activity and sought to recruit support among the military.{{sfn|Federal Research Division|2004|pp=210–211}}

By the end of 1957, the SCP was able to weaken the Ba'ath Party to such an extent that the Ba'ath Party drafted a bill in December that called for a union with Egypt, a move that proved to be very popular. The Ba'ath leadership dissolved the party in 1958, gambling that the illegalisation of certain parties would hurt the SCP more than it would the Ba'ath.{{sfn|Federal Research Division|2004|pp=211–212}}

[[File:Hawrani Aflaq 1957.jpg|thumb|250px|[[Akram al-Hourani]] (left) with [[Michel Aflaq]], 1957.]]
A [[1961 Syrian coup d'état|military coup]] in [[Damascus]] in 1961 brought the UAR to an end.{{sfn|Federal Research Division|2004|pp=52–53}} Sixteen prominent politicians signed a statement supporting the coup, among them al-Hawrani and [[Salah al-Din al-Bitar]] (who later retracted his signature).{{sfn|Podeh|1999|pp=152–153}} Following the UAR's dissolution, the Ba'ath Party was reestablished at the 1962 congress.{{sfn|Federal Research Division|2004|p=55}} The Military Committee did not show itself to the civilian wing of the party at this congress.{{sfn|George|2003|p=68}} During the congress, Aflaq and the Military Committee, through [[Muhammad Umran]], made contact for the first time; the committee asked for permission to initiate a coup d'état; Aflaq supported the conspiracy.{{sfn|Seale|1990|p=75}}

Following the success of the [[Ramadan Revolution]], led by the Ba'ath Party's [[Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region|Iraqi Regional Branch]], the Military Committee hastily convened to hatch a coup against [[Nazim al-Qudsi]]'s presidency.{{sfn|Seale|1990|pp=76–78}} The [[1963 Syrian coup d'état|8 March Revolution]] proved successful, and a Ba'athist government in Syria was established.{{sfn|Seale|1990|pp=76–78}} The plotters first order was to establish the [[National Council for the Revolutionary Command]] (NCRC), consisting entirely of Ba'athists and Nasserists, and controlled by military personnel rather than civilians from the very beginning.{{sfn|Seale|1990|p=78}}

While the Ba'ath Party had attained power, there was significant infighting.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=68–69}} The Military Committee, which was itself a tiny minority of the already small Ba'ath Party membership, ruled by force.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=68–69}} The Ba'ath Party lacked a popular base, as it had only 2,500 members by mid-1963. Even if membership expanded, the authoritarian rule it had introduced would only increase.{{sfn|George|2003|pp=68–69}}

The civilian wing was plagued by infighting between the radical socialist and moderate faction, while the military stood more unified.{{sfn|George|2003|p=69}} Whatever the case, the [[Central Command of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Syria Region|Syrian Regional Command]] slowly amassed its powers by weakening the National Command.{{sfn|George|2003|p=69}} This all came to a head in the [[1966 Syrian coup d'état]].{{sfn|George|2003|p=69}}

The party officially indefinitely suspended all activities in Syria on 11 December 2024, following the [[Fall of the Assad regime]].<ref>\{{cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/en/middle-east/20241211-live-syrian-refugees-attempt-return-to-homeland-after-assad-regime-ousted|title=Assad's Baath party suspends work indefinitely in Syria|publisher=France 24|date=11 December 2024}}</ref>