The Army and Political Power in the Arab Context: Theoretical Issues

Authors

  • Author

  • Azmi Bishara

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31430/almuntaqa.1.1.0011

Keywords:

Army

Abstract

This study is concerned with the relationship between the army and politics, not as an ailment specific to Arab societies but as the byproduct of historical development, the nature of the Arab state, and the process attendant to its development, structure, and modernization. The paper sets out from the hypothesis that by definition no army is far removed from politics, and that in recently independent states, the military has a role in state building and in accelerating the country through historical stages. The study focuses on the army's political aspirations in the narrow sense of seizing and wielding power. The distinction is made between the concepts of “revolution” and “coup,” two concepts which have been historically intertwined in Arab public discourse, as an introduction to thinking about various historical experiences and examples where the military played an important role in the process of political and social change. The study affirms the difficulty of reaching any theoretical generalization governing the relationship between the army and power, and its behavior in power, while it attempts to differentiate between a coup launched by the regime against a political process it had initiated, and a coup launched by radicalized officers with the aim of reforming or changing the regime. Finally, there is an attempt to lay down five common features that characterize the relationship between the military and political power in the Arab world.

References

  1. The concept of this intervention has been expanded by many armies in the contemporary world to include guarding the constitution (or regime) against instability , and also against anything new. Some researchers view it as deserving the designation guardians or guards , including the Roman - derived
  2. This was based on Christian prisoners of war after the occupation of Edirne. See: Halil Inalcik , The Ottoman Empire: The Classical Age 1300-1800 , Norman Itzkowitz and Colin Imber (trans.), London: Weidenfield and Nicolson , 1973 ; and Sati ' Al - Husari , The Arab Countries and the Ottoman State (Beirut: Praetorian Guard. Dar Al - Ilm lil - Malayin , 1960) (Arabic), pp. 16 - 17.
  3. Al - Husari , pp. 47 - 8.
  4. Plato ’ s Republic , Allan Bloom (trans.), 2 nd edition (New York: Basic Books , 1979).
  5. Mahmud II ’ s operation to kill their leaders and disband them was called the “ Auspicious Incident.”
  6. Al - Husari , pp. 83 - 4.
  7. I tried and failed to find another term to express tyranny embodied in the ruling individual. In fact , this is more accurate than dictatorship , which gives the potential to conceive of the just or benevolent dictatorship. Tyranny , however , describes a dictatorship based on oppression and injustice.
  8. We find this use of inqilab by Constantin Zureiq in The Meaning of Disaster , translated by R. Bayly Winder (Beirut: Khayat ' s College , 1956).
  9. Winston Churchill , A History of English Speaking Peoples (New York: Dodd , Mead & Company , 1956), p. 314.
  10. Al - Husari , p. 121.
  11. See Samuel E. Finer , The Man on Horseback: The Role of the Military in Politics , with a New Introduction by Jay Stanley (New Brunswick , NJ:
  12. There are many examples , but it will suffice to mention the main ones: Morris Janowitz , The Military in the Political Development of New Nations (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press , 1964); Samuel Huntington , Political Order in Changing Societies (New Haven: Yale Univ. Press , 2006), especially the Transaction , 2002), pp. 164 - 84 chapter entitled , “ Praetorianism and Political Decay ,” pp. 192 - 263.
  13. Khaled Nezzar , L ’ armée algérienne face à la désinformation: le procès de Paris , (Paris: Médiane , 2003).
  14. Bernard Lewis , The Emergence of Modern Turkey , 3 rd ed. (Oxford & NY: Oxford Univ. Press , 2003), pp. 290 - 1. on direct loyalty awakens partisanship and links it with government , reproducing it. Center for Arab Unity Studies , 2000), (Arabic), pp. 127 - 8. military coups.
  15. In the author ’ s view , the search for regional or tribal loyalty leads to partisan results and not the reverse. This is the opposite of Ibn Khaldun , which was true in his period. Partisanship aspires to conquest and the seizure of power , to become the state. In the modern Arab state , the authorities by their insistence
  16. Issues of regional loyalties (that turned into sectarianism in Syria and Iraq under Baath rule) that became outright sectarianism in Iraq after the occupation , are well known. Similarly , tribal loyalties and their intersection with loyalties in the Yemeni army , but even in a state like Mauritania , the army went through a conflict that took on an Arab vs black form at one of its stages. See Al - Sayyid Ould Abah et al., Mauritania: Culture , State , and Society , 2 vols., (Beirut:
  17. Led by Jaafar Abu al - Taman and Kamil al - Dżadirdżi at the time. The communists had doubts about the coup which , aside from Bakr Sidqi , appeared to be driven by Hikmat Sulayman the opponent of Prime Minister Yasin al - Hashimi at a period of instability that prevailed in Iraq after the death of King Faisal I when the government changed more than ten times in three years. However , Kamil al - Dżadirdżi , who hoped for democracy and the peaceful handover of power to civilians , was disappointed and so did not fulfil the request of Abdel Karim Kassem for support after the coup , and took a suspicious position towards
  18. He later looked at them as popular revolutions , although in reality they were tribal uprisings by tribes who professed the Shia doctrine.
  19. Eric Davis , Memories of State: Politics , History , and Collective Identity in Modern Iraq , (Berkeley: University of California Press , 2005). Institute for Palestine Studies , 2003), (Arabic), p. 55.
  20. These included the Mathni Club (led by Farid Zayn al - Din , Siddiq Shunshul , Naji Maaruf , and Salaheddin al - Sabagh) and the National Labor Organization (Yunis al - Sabawi , Said al - Hajj Thabit , and Darwish al - Miqdadi) along with al - Hajj Amin al - Husseini and a number of nationalist figures who had left Lebanon and Syria for Iraq as a result of the conditions prevailing there at the time. See Aziz al - Azmeh , Constantin Zureiq: An Arab for the Twentieth Century , (Beirut:
  21. The leaders of the Masonic Lodges were active in the coup of Hosni al - Za ’ im in 1949. His foreign minister (Adel Arslan) was one of them. Hinnawi ’ s coup witnessed greater action by the Masons. This is not studied in the modern history of Syria and was elucidated by our colleague at ACRPS Mohammed Jamal Barut in light of an analysis of the documentary and historical records of the Syrian Lodges and the personalities who tried to consolidate the second coup and market it politically in the circles of the enlightened elites.
  22. Khaled Nezzar also wrote: “ President Boumediene , who was a statesman of a level comparable to the great statesmen of his age , was never able to transcend the selfish considerations and petty hatreds that he carried with him. … Deep resentments and pathological mistrust and suspicion would cast dark shadows over his noble personal traits. … Houari was always making Boumediene see a contingent adversary as an enemy who had to be got rid of and would push him to crush without mercy those who dared to confront him , one after another ,” Nezzar. Boumediene is certainly not the worst example , and we mention below personal animosities that hindered development , and represented a key driver of the decision - making process.
  23. Anouar Abdel - Malek , Egypt: Military Society ; the Army Regime , the Left and Social Change under Nasser , Charles Lam Markmann (trans.), (New York: Random House , 1968). The first Arabic translation of the book appeared in 1974. See also: Azmi Bishara , The Egyptian Revolution , vol. 1 , From the
  24. Ahmed Abdullah , “ The Armed Forces and Democratic Evolution in Egypt ,” in: Ahmed Abdullah (ed.), The Army and Democracy in Egypt (Cairo: Sinai July Republic to the January Revolution (Beirut , Doha: ACRPS , 2016), (Arabic), p. 24. lil - Nashr , 1990), (Arabic), p. 10. See also , Bishara , Egyptian Revolution , (Arabic), pp. 25 - 6.
  25. Nizar al - Kayyali , A Study of Contemporary Syrian Political History , 1920 - 1950 (Damascus: Dar Tlas , 1997), (Arabic), p. 195.
  26. Arif al - Arif , Al - Nakba: The Disaster of Jerusalem and the Lost Paradise , 2 vols. (Sidon: Al - Maktaba Al - Asriya , 1956), (Arabic), pp. 349 - 58.
  27. Ahmad al - Sharbati (Minister of Defense), Second Meeting of August 28 , 1948 , The Official Gazette (Damascus), (Arabic), November 4 , 1948. Towards Freedom: An Attempt at Contemporary History (Beirut , Doha: ACRPS , 2013), (Arabic), pp. 279 - 83. were against killing them. Institute of International Affairs , 1969.
  28. The author has dealt with this topic before more broadly , and the paragraphs above are from his 2013 book. See Azmi Bishara , Syria ’ s Via Dolorosa
  29. He started by killing the royal family on the night of the coup , despite his desire for understanding and surrender , even though the majority of Free Officers
  30. Majid Khadduri , Republican Iraq: A Study in Iraqi Politics since the Revolution of 1958, (London , New York: Oxford University Press for the Royal
  31. Ibid., p. 108. famous when he pensioned off Abdel Aziz Bouteflika in 2015.
  32. This is prominent in the case of Syria. Military Intelligence reports are submitted directly to the president and not the chiefs of staff. In Algeria their power increased greatly after the failed coup attempt of army head Colonel Tahar Zbiri (there was no rank of general in the Algerian army in the period of Boumediene). Since then the president has relied on the strength of the Central Security Forces , whose head , Mohamed Mdin (Taoufic) subsequently became
  33. Khadduri , Republican Iraq.
  34. On his central role with Rajab Abdel Majid in founding the Free Officers , see: Hanna Batatu , and Free Officers (Princeton , NJ: Princeton University Press , 1979). secretary to the chief of staff. Ibid.
  35. Lieutenant - Colonel Wasfi al - Taher was field assistant to Nouri al - Said. Staff brigadier Ismail Ali was the commander of the first artillery division and close to the Communist Party and its military organization , the Union of Soldiers and Officers , and is not the same as Staff lieutenant - colonel Ismail Arif ,
  36. Ibid., pp.. For more details , see also pp..
  37. See: Bishara , Syria ’ s Via Dolorosa towards Freedom , pp. 283 - 4. committee was set up after it.
  38. Perhaps Saleh Mahdi Ammash worked essentially in an organized party - political capacity within the Free Officers group before the coup , but the military
  39. These ideas have been reprinted in articles and chapters of the book On Some Issues of the Arab Revolution which al - Hafez wrote in the 1960 s. In his assessment , the July Revolution demonstrated that it was a revolution and not a coup , because it opened the door to profound changes in Egypt ’ s political system and socioeconomic structure. However , he clearly distinguished between a revolution from above , as he considered the July coup , and a grassroots popular revolution. He thought that Abdel Nasser did not succeed in turning it into a popular revolution , for he did not organize the workers and the peasants or let them join in the process of decision making and governing the country , which brings us back to the question related to democracy. I believe that Yasin al - Hafez was ahead of his generation of nationalists in raising these issues and the relationship between nationalism and democracy. Yasin al - Hafez , Complete Works of Yasin al - Hafez: On some issues of the Arab revolution (Beirut: Center for Arab Unity Studies , 2005), pp. 110 - 204.
  40. Hazem Kandil , Soldiers , Spies , and Statesmen: Egypt ’ s Road to Revolt (London , Brooklyn , NY: Verso , 2012), p. 25.
  41. Lewis , The Emergence of Modern Turkey , p. 474. position: Bishara , Egypt ’ s Revolution , vol. 1. p. 44. Hamouda , an officer from the Brotherhood who participated in meetings at the house of the American military attaché with Abdel Nasser in the period 1950 -
  42. Kandil , p. 26. See also the American position on Al - Sanhouri ’ s being charged with forming a government and the acceptance of the Free Officers of this
  43. Miles Copeland , The Game of Nations: The Amorality of Power Politics (New York: Simon and Schuster , 1970), pp. 51 - 3 ; nobody has produced evidence that Abdel Nasser took part in any of those meetings before the revolution. Ahmad Hamroush has written about the activity of Kermit Roosevelt with King Farouq , and relied upon the abovementioned book of Copeland ’ s to present his activity in Egypt. Although Roosevelt did not deny his contacts with the Free Officers , Harmoush affirms that there was no proof of direct contact with Abdel Nasser personally: “ Nevertheless , there is not a single piece of evidence that Gamal Abdel Nasser had personal contact with Kermit Roosevelt before the move , although the communications of some of his colleagues with the Americans had made him ask Khaled Mohieddin not to use the phrase ‘ Anglo - American colonialism ’ in the publications of the Free Officers , but to make do with the mention of British colonialism. That was in March 1952 , and a result of the support those colleagues had felt from American officials in the region.” See: Ahmad Harmoush , The Story of the July 23 Revolution (Beirut: Al - Muassasa al - Arabia lil - Dirasat wal - Nashr , 1977), (Arabic), p. 187 ; we would have relied on Copeland ’ s book alone , were it not that one of the participants in the meetings confirmed it in his memoires , see: Hussain Mohammed Ahmad Hamouda , The Secrets of the Free Officers Movement and the Muslim Brotherhood , 2 vols. (Cairo: Al - Zahra for Arab Media , 1985), (Arabic), pp. 88 - 9. Hussain Ahmad 1952 , states that the meetings concerned the Egyptian army ’ s relationship with the United States , the danger communism posed to the Middle East , and US backing for any revival in Egypt , because the status quo in Egypt might encourage the spread of communism. In his view , the officers had an interest in the United States ’ stopping British intervention against their move , and that the United States backed the revolution and opened the door of its military institutes to train Egyptian army officers in their hundreds immediately after the revolution. The officer Hamouda himself completed his studies at the Higher War College in America (Hamouda , p. 90). He also states that Abdel Nasser opposed the idea of an Islamic alliance against the Soviet Union (Hamouda , p. 91); Anwar Sadat also relates that the US ambassador considered his notification of the date of the move as a “ good gesture from us ,” and “ our contact with him really was the beginning of a good relationship between us and him … even when the English were exerting every effort to discover who the men of the revolution were , the US ambassador invited us for dinner at his residence at the embassy , and all of us accepted the invitation … all the members of the Council of the Revolution.”
  44. As far as the communists ’ using the nickname “ supreme leader ” to describe Kassem , which they disseminated widely according to Hana Batatu. In this way they undoubtedly elevated Kassem compared to Arif and Abdel Nasser. See: Batatu , p..
  45. Lewis , The Emergence of Modern Turkey , p. 248.
  46. See: Bishara , Syria ’ s Via Dolorosa towards Freedom.
  47. The same thing happened in the Syrian precedent when Shukri al - Quwatli appointed Husni al - Za ’ im commander of the army — he had been head of the police — and he launched a coup against him a few months later.
1Total citations
0From ACRPS journals
1External sources

Citing articles from external sources (1)

  1. Raquel Ojeda-García, Samara López-Ruiz (2023) Un análisis de los factores de la politización de los militares. Mauritania como estudio de caso. Revista de Estudios Internacionales Mediterráneos, 189 https://doi.org/10.15366/reim2023.35.008

Sources: Crossref Cited-by, and the references (notes and reference lists) of the Center's own articles

Cover of العدد 1, Almuntaqa

Downloads

PDF (Hosted)
HTML

Published

2018-01-01

Usage statistics

41 views 78 downloads

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 001 (2018): Issue 001

Section

المقالات

License

Copyright (c) 2018 Almuntaqa

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.