Corrective Movement (Syria)

1970 coup
Part of the Arab Cold War
Date 13 November 1970 Location Syria Result Overthrow of Salah Jadid and his leftist allies Appointment of a Temporary Regional Command of the Ba'ath Syrian Regional Branch
Belligerents
Syrian Government Syrian Regional Branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party	Hafez al-Assad loyalists
Commanders and leaders
Salah Jadid (POW) Nureddin al-Atassi	Hafez al-Assad Rifaat al-Assad Mustafa Tlass
Casualties and losses
No mortal casualties

The Corrective Movement (الحركة التصحيحية), also referred to as the Corrective Revolution, was a political movement in Syria, initiated by a coup d'état, led by General Hafez al-Assad on 13 November 1970. Al-Assad's program of reform, considered revolutionary in Syria, aimed to sustain and improve the "nationalist socialist line" of the state and the Ba'ath party. Al-Assad would rule Syria until his death in 2000, after which he was succeeded by his son Bashar al-Assad.

Al-Assad started planning to seize power shortly after the failed Syrian military intervention in the Black September crisis in Jordan. While Al-Assad had been in de facto command of Syrian politics since 1969, Salah Jadid and his supporters still held all the formal trappings of power. After attending Gamal Abdel Nasser's funeral, Al-Assad returned to Syria to attend the Emergency National Congress held on 30 October 1970. At the congress, Al-Assad was condemned by Jadid and his supporters, who formed the majority of the party delegates. However, before attending the congress, Al-Assad had ordered troops loyal to him to surround the building in which the congress was held. Criticism of Al-Assad's political position continued, but with Assad's troops surrounding the building, the majority of delegates knew that they had lost the battle. Assad and Mustafa Tlass were stripped of their government posts during the congress, although this move had little practical influence.

When the National Congress broke up on 12 November 1970, Al-Assad ordered loyalists to arrest the leading members of Jadid's government. While many leading middle men were offered posts in Syria's embassies abroad, Jadid refused, telling Assad, "If I ever take power you will be dragged through the streets until you die." In response, Assad imprisoned Jadid who spent the rest of his life at Mezze prison. There were no fatalities, and the country remained calm following the coup. The only proof to the outside world that something was amiss was the fact that official dailies, radio, and, televisions stations either stopped publishing or were off the air. A Temporary Regional Command was established shortly after, and on 16 November 1970, the new government published its first decree.

...
Wikipedia