Coup in Damascus: Husni Al-Zaim and the Birth of Syrian Military Rule

Coup in Damascus explores Syria’s 1949 military coup by focusing on cost-driven political action. Rihan affirms that flawed monetary policies, disrupted trade, and recurrent economic interventionism led to the rise of authoritarianism, thereby offering a fresh interdisciplinary perspective on Middle Eastern history.

Carl Rihan is Lecturer in Public Policy, International Security, and Middle East History at SciencesPo Lille and a registered independent consultant on public affairs (France).