The cult of Bashar Al Assad

As violence drew the attention of the world's media to the protests in the Virginia city of Charlottesville, a novel and previously barely remarked phenomenon was observed. Amid the usual Nazi chants and imagery of white supremacy was the open display of support and celebration for Bashar Al Assad.

How did the Syrian dictator become the poster child for white supremacists? Unpicking this extraordinary spectacle of American far-right support for  Al Assad, The National’s Washington correspondent, Joyce Karam, noted three aspects: far-right anti-Semitism and dislike of Israel, the “common cause” of Assad's rejection of the Iraq war and the belief that he is standing up to the “globalists”, and their image of him as an authoritarian leader.

These elements, Karam pointed out, overlap, creating an image in the minds of these ideologues which persists despite them not knowing much about the Syrian civil war or indeed Syria itself.

Yet this support for the Al Assad regime is not limited to the far-right. On the far-left of the political spectrum,  Al Assad is also lionised and for many of the same reasons.

In particular, it is the legacy of the Iraq war and  Al Assad's “credentials” as authoritarian and secular that most on the far-left praise.

The American far-right believe it was shadowy “globalists” who persuaded the US to go to war in Iraq. For the far-left in western countries, especially the United States and the United Kingdom, there is no such subgroup. Instead, there is just good old-fashioned US imperialism – and it is  Al Assad who is standing up to it.

This isn't a new thought. Anyone who spent time in Syria in the years before the revolution will remember this line of argument used again and again.  Al Assad used it in the years after the September 11 attacks, as the Americans geared up to invade Iraq. His father Hafez used it in the 1990s when Syria was ostracised around the region.

But the Iraq invasion connects all of them. Because of the invasion, leftists became allergic to any military action, especially if it involved the United States. On the far-left, there is an acceptance, sometimes even praise, for Vladimir Putin's decisions in Syria and for the fighting skills of Hizbollah and Iran.

 

The cult of Bashar Al Assad

As violence drew the attention of the worlds media to the protests in the Virginia city of Charlottesville, a novel and previously barely remarked phenomenon was observed. Amid the usual Nazi chants and imagery of white supremacy was the open display of support and celebration for Bashar Al Assad. How did the Syrian dictator become the poster child for white supremacists? Unpicking this extraordinary spectacle of American far-right support for Al Assad, The Nationals Washington correspondent, Joyce Karam, noted three aspects: far-right anti-Semitism and dislike of Israel, the common cause of Assads rejection of the Iraq war and the belief that he is standing up to the globalists, and their image of him as an authoritarian leader. These elements, Karam pointed out, overlap, creating an image in the minds of these ideologues which persists despite them not knowing much about the Syrian civil war or indeed Syria itself. Yet this support for the Al Assad regime is not limited to the far-right. On the far-left of the political spectrum, Al Assad is also lionised and for many of the same reasons. In particular, it is the legacy of the Iraq war and Al Assads credentials as authoritarian and secular that most on the far-left praise. The American far-right believe it was shadowy globalists who persuaded the US to go to war in Iraq. For the far-left in western countries, especially the United States and the United Kingdom, there is no such subgroup. Instead, there is just good old-fashioned US imperialism and it is Al Assad who is standing up to it. This isnt a new thought. Anyone who spent time in Syria in the years before the revolution will remember this line of argument used again and again. Al Assad used it in the years after the September 11 attacks, as the Americans geared up to invade Iraq. His father Hafez used it in the 1990s when Syria was ostracised around the region. But the Iraq invasion connects all of them. Because of the invasion, leftists became allergic to any military action, especially if it involved the United States. On the far-left, there is an acceptance, sometimes even praise, for Vladimir Putins decisions in Syria and for the fighting skills of Hizbollah and Iran.