Back القوات البرية العربية السورية Arabic Exèrcit Àrab Sirià Catalan Syrská arabská armáda Czech Syrisches Heer German Συριακός Στρατός Ξηράς Greek Ejército Árabe Sirio Spanish نیروی زمینی سوریه Persian Armée syrienne French הצבא הסורי HE Angkatan Darat Suriah ID
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| Syrian Army | |
|---|---|
| الجيش السوري | |
.svg) | |
| Founded | 1 August 1945[1] 1971 (modern form) 2024 (current form) |
| Country |  Syria |
| Type | Army |
| Role | Land warfare |
| Size | 170,000 (2023)[2]
Military age: 18 |
| Part of | Syrian Armed Forces |
| Garrison/HQ | Damascus |
| Motto(s) | "Arabic: حُمَاةَ الدِّيَارِ" (Guardians of the Homeland) |
| Colors |
|
| Anniversaries | August 1st |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Head of state | Ahmed al-Sharaa |
| Minister of Defense | Maj. Gen. Murhaf Abu Qasra |
| Chief of the General Staff | Ali Noureddine Al-Naasan |
The Syrian Army is the land force branch of the Syrian Armed Forces.
Up until the fall of the Assad regime, the Syrian Arab Army (SyAA or SAA)[a] existed as a land force branch of the Syrian Arab Armed Forces, which dominanted the military service of the four uniformed services, controlling the most senior posts in the armed forces, and had the greatest manpower, approximately 80 percent of the combined services..[5] The Syrian Army originated in local military forces formed by the French after World War I, after France obtained a mandate over the region.[6] It officially came into being in 1945, before Syria obtained full independence the following year.
After 1946, it played a major role in Syria's governance, mounting six military coups: two in 1949, including the March 1949 Syrian coup d'état and the August 1949 coup by Colonel Sami al-Hinnawi, and one each in 1951, 1954, 1963, 1966, and 1970. It fought four wars with Israel (1948, the Six-Day War in 1967, the Yom Kippur War of 1973, and 1982 Lebanon War) and one with Jordan ("Black September" in Jordan, 1970). An armored division was also deployed to Saudi Arabia in 1990–91 during the Gulf War, but saw little action. From 1976 to 2005 it was the major pillar of the Syrian occupation of Lebanon. Internally, it played a major part in suppressing the 1979–82 Islamist uprising in Syria, and from 2011 to 2024 was heavily engaged in fighting the Syrian Civil War, the most violent and prolonged war the Syrian Army had taken part in since its establishment in the 1940s.
The Syrian Army Command told soldiers and officers they were no longer in service as of 8 December 2024, with the fall of the Assad regime.[7] A new Syrian Army led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham is in the process of reconstruction.[8]
- ^ Syria News 1 August 2013, President Bashar Al-Assad visits soldiers to mark Army Day and pledge victory. 3 August 2013. Archived from the original on 2016-03-24. Retrieved 2015-10-12 – via YouTube.
- ^ The Military Balance 2023 page 354
- ^ "The World Factbook". cia.gov. Retrieved 2013-06-15.
- ^ "CIA World Factbook". CIA. Archived from the original on 2016-03-22. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
- ^ "Syria Rearms: Russian deliveries of BMP-2s and 2S9s arrive". Oryx blog. 15 June 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2023.; Waters, Gregory (1 May 2018). "2018 East Ghouta Offensive: the Cost of Securing Damascus".
- ^ Pollack 2002, p. 447.
- ^ "Syrian army command informs officers al-Assad's rule has ended". Yahoo News. 7 December 2024.
- ^ "HTS leader al-Shara confirms negotiations with Syrian Democratic Forces as Syria steps toward a unified Syrian Army".
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