Sectarianism and Civil War in Syria

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.

Raymond Hinnebusch is 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 at the Department of Political Science, Aarhus University. He is 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.