Islamist uprising in Syria

Islamist uprising in Syria
	Part of the Arab Cold War
	; A destroyed section of Hama's old town, after the 1982 Hama massacre
Date	31 May 1976 – 28 February 1982; (5 years, 10 months and 4 weeks)
Location	Damascus, Hama, Aleppo, Palmyra and Jisr ash-Shugur
Result	Syrian government victory Uprising suppressed; Muslim Brotherhood outlawed;
Belligerents
Fighting Vanguard; Muslim Brotherhood (after mid-1979); Supported by:; Iraq (1980–1982); Jordan; West Germany	Syrian government Supported by:; Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Marwan Hadid (Founder of the Fighting Vanguard) ; `Adnan `Uqla (Commander of the Fighting Vanguard) (MIA); Sa`id Hawwa; Adnan Saad al-Din ; Ali al-Bayanouni ; Abd al-Fattah Abu Ghudda; ;	Hafez al-Assad (President of Syria, Commander-in-Chief); Rifaat al-Assad (commander of the Defense Companies); Shafiq Fayadh (commander of the 3rd Armoured Division); Hikmat al-Shihabi (chief of staff of the SAA); Ali Haydar (special forces commander); Ali Duba (director of Military Intelligence);
Strength
Thousands "hardline" Islamists Tens of thousands loosely armed supporters and sympathizers	Varies per combat zone (~30,000 in Hama).
Casualties and losses
Reports vary (lowest; 3,000, highest; 25,000)	1,000+
	Total death toll unknown estimates vary from 10,000 - 40,000 killed

The Islamist uprising in Syria comprised a series of protests, assassinations, bombings, and armed revolts led by Sunni Islamists, mainly members of the Fighting Vanguard and, after 1979, the Muslim Brotherhood, from 1976 until 1982. The uprising aimed to establish an Islamic Republic in Syria by overthrowing the Ba'athist government, in what has been described by Ba'ath Party as a "long campaign of terror".

After 1980, the popular resistance to Ba'athist rule expanded; with a coalition of Islamist opposition groups coordinating nation-wide strikes, protests and revolts throughout Syria. During the violent events; resistance militias attacked Syrian Arab Army bases and carried out political assassinations of Ba'ath party cadres, army officials, Soviet military advisors, and bureaucrats linked to Assad family. Civilians were also killed in retaliatory strikes conducted by security forces. The uprising reached its climax in the 1982 Hama massacre, during which the Syrian government killed over 40,000 civilians.

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