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As an epicentre of sectarian conflict before and after the Arab uprising, Syria provides an excellent laboratory for the study of sectarianization. This book compares variance in Syria's sectarianism over time and across place to expose its causes and its varying impact on Syria's society and polity.
The book begins with an introductory chapter examining key approaches to and debates over sectarianism in Syria, from which a framework of analysis is derived. Subsequent empirical chapters are divided into two sections. Several chapters examine key aspects of sectarianism at the national level, looking at the interaction of sectarianism and state formation over the long term; the internal evolution of sectarianization during the uprising; the impact of the regional power struggle on Syria's sectarianization; and whether sectarianism was institutionalized by civil war governance in both regime- and opposition-controlled areas. A second set of chapters looks at sectarianism in Syria's different cities, regions and communities, notably in Damascus, Homs, Hama, Aleppo, Idlib, the Alawi coast, and the Druze and Christian communities. The concluding chapter makes use of the analytical framework to systematically compare the evidence from the empirical cases in order to identify regularities.
Providing nuanced insights into the Syrian case whilst informing broader theoretical discussions of sectarianism, this book will appeal to students, researchers and general readers interested in Middle Eastern politics and political science generally.
List of contents
Part I. Debates and Conceptualizations 1. Theorizing Sectarianism in Syria: Toward a Framework of Analysis Part II. National Level Structure and Dynamics 2. Identity and State Building Over Time: Political Institutions and Syria's Sectarianism-Nationalism Balance 3. Mapping and Explaining Sectarianization in the Syrian Uprising: The Dynamics of Regime-Opposition Interaction at the Domestic Level 4. The Regional System and Sectarianization in Syria 5. The Regime's Adaptation to Civil War: Institutionalizing Sectarianism? 6. The Sectarianization of the Syrian Uprising: The Jihadization of Opposition Governance Part III. Variations in Sectarianization: Time, Place, and Group 7. Sectarianization in Homs and Damascus: A Tale of Two Different Cities 8. Conflict in Aleppo: A Clash Between Sects or Social Classes? 9. Hama and the Mobilization of Identity: Urban-Rural Divisions and Sectarianization 10. Sectarianism and Islamist Militarization in Idlib 11. Beyond Alawites and Sunnis: The Sectarian Mosaic of Deir ez-Zor and al-Hasakah 12. Sectarianization and the State among Druze Communities in Syria: Case Studies of Jaramana and Golan 13. Sectarian Cohabitation in Syria's Coast, a Glimmer of Hope 14. Sectarianism amongst Syrian Christians: Aleppo, Damascus, Daraa, Al-Hasakah, Maaloula and Homs 15. Urbicide and Sectarianization in Syria: The Politics of Space in Damascus and Aleppo Part IV. Theoretical Findings 16. Conclusion: Exposing Patterns of Sectarianization in Syria
About the author
Raymond Hinnebusch is a professor of International Relations and Middle East Politics at the University of St Andrews, Founder and Director of the Centre for Syrian Studies and Editor of
Syria Studies. He has recently co-edited
The War for Syria: Regional and International Dimensions of the Syrian Uprising (2019), and
Actors and Dynamics in the Syrian Conflict's Middle Phase: Between Contentious Politics, Militarization and Regime Resilience (2022).
Morten Valbjørn is an associate professor in the Department of Political Science at Aarhus University. He is a member of the advisory board of POMEPS: Project on Middle East Political Science and has been directing various international research projects, including SWAR: Sectarianism in the Wake of the Arab Revolts and TOI: Bringing in the Other Islamists.
Summary
As an epicentre of sectarian conflict before and after the Arab uprising, Syria provides an excellent laboratory for the study of sectarianization. This book compares variance in Syria’s sectarianism over time and across place in order to expose its causes and its varying impact on Syria’s society and polity.
