# Arab Liberation Movement

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Arab_Liberation_Movement
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Arab_Liberation_Movement.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Liberation_Movement
> Source revision: 1314766903
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

This article needs more citations. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Arab Liberation Movement" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Political party in Syria

Arab Liberation Movement حركة التحرر العربي Chairperson Adib Shishakli Secretary-General Maamun al-Kuzbari Founded 25 August 1952 Dissolved 8 March 1963 Headquarters Damascus Newspaper Al Tahrir al Arabi ("The Arab Liberation") Ideology Syrian nationalism[1] Modernization[2] Pro-Western Bloc[3][4] Political position Centre-right Politics of Syria Political parties Elections

The **Arab Liberation Movement** ([Arabic](/source/Arabic_language): حركة التحرر العربي *Ḥarakat Al-Tahrir Al-'Arabiy*; [French](/source/French_language): *Mouvement du liberation arabe*) was a [Syrian](/source/Syria) political party founded on 25 August 1952 by the [President of Syria](/source/President_of_Syria) [Adib Shishakli](/source/Adib_Shishakli). It was the [only legal party](/source/One-party_state) in Syria from its inception until 1954.

## History

Following his coup, Shishakli then dissolved all political parties and banned many newspapers, in a return to military rule. Among those to suffer persecution under his rule were the [National Party](/source/National_Party_(Syria)) of Damascus, the [People's Party](/source/People's_Party_(Syria)) of Aleppo, the [Communist Party](/source/Syrian_Communist_Party), the [Ba'ath Party](/source/Ba'ath_Party), and the Syrian [Muslim Brotherhood](/source/Muslim_Brotherhood). He also outlawed all [newspapers](/source/Newspaper) that were not pro-Shishakli, and banished the Ba'ath leaders [Akram al-Hawrani](/source/Akram_al-Hawrani), [Michel Aflaq](/source/Michel_Aflaq), and [Salah al-Bitar](/source/Salah_al-Bitar) to Lebanon, where they then actively worked against his government.

He was a skilled public speaker, however, and relied greatly on the [radio](/source/Radio) to transmit his speeches to every-day Syrians. On 25 August 1952, he established an official government party, the *Arab Liberation Movement*, but it was [boycotted](/source/Boycott) by powerful representatives of the civilian political society, such as [Hashim al-Atassi](/source/Hashim_al-Atassi). The party was progressive and accepted women among its ranks and calling for a limited degree of [socialism](/source/Arab_socialism). Some said that he viewed himself as "an Arab [Caesar](/source/Julius_Caesar)." In mid-1953 Shishakli staged an [election](/source/Syrian_presidential_election%2C_1953) to make himself [President](/source/President_of_Syria), but he was by now facing mounting dissent.

Shishakli continued to rule the country until 1954, when [growing public opposition forced him to resign](/source/1954_Syrian_coup_d'%C3%A9tat) and leave the country. The national government was restored, but again to face instability, this time coming from abroad. After the overthrow of President Shishakli in a [1954 coup](/source/1954_Syrian_coup_d'%C3%A9tat), continued political maneuvering supported by competing factions in the military eventually brought Arab nationalist and socialist elements to power.

Growing discontent eventually led to another coup, in which Shishakli was overthrown in February 1954. The plotters included members of the [Syrian Communist Party](/source/Syrian_Communist_Party), Druze officers, and [Ba'ath Party](/source/Ba'ath_Party) members and possibly had Iraqi backing. He had also arrested a lot of active officers in the Syrian Army, including the rising young [Adnan al-Malki](/source/Adnan_al-Malki), also a prominent Baathist. Leading the anti-Shishakli movement were former President Atassi and the veteran Druze leader [Sultan al-Atrash](/source/Sultan_al-Atrash). The largest anti-Shishakli conference had been held in Atassi's home in [Homs](/source/Homs). Shishakli had responded by arresting Atassi and [Atrash](/source/Atrash)'s sons, Adnan and Mansur (both of whom were ranking politicians in Syria).

When the insurgency reached its peak, Shishakli backed down, refusing to drag Syria into [civil war](/source/Civil_war). He fled to Lebanon, but when the Druze leader [Kamal Jumblat](/source/Kamal_Jumblat) threatened to have him killed, he fled to [Brazil](/source/Brazil). Prior to the [union](/source/United_Arab_Republic) between Syria and Egypt in 1958, Shishakli toyed with the idea of returning to Syria to launch a coup d'état, using funds provided by Iraq. The coup was foiled by Syrian intelligence and Shishakli was sentenced to death *in absentia*.

After the [Syrian parliamentary election, 1954](/source/Syrian_parliamentary_election%2C_1954), the party obtained two seats in the [Syrian Parliament](/source/Syrian_Parliament). In 1958, following the unification of Syria with Egypt to form the [United Arab Republic](/source/United_Arab_Republic), the party was banned by the Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser.

In the [Syrian parliamentary election, 1961](/source/Syrian_parliamentary_election%2C_1961), the Arab Liberation Movement gained four seats in the Syrian parliament

The party was dissolved on March 8, 1963, following the [Ba'athist Coup](/source/1963_Syrian_coup_d'%C3%A9tat).

## Electoral history

### Presidential elections

Election Party candidate Votes % Result 1953 Adib Shishakli 861,910 99.7% Elected Y

### Syrian People's Council elections

Election Party leader Seats +/– Position 1953 Adib Shishakli 72 / 82 72 1st 1954 Adib Shishakli 2 / 142 70 7th 1961 Adib Shishakli 4 / 172 2 5th

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Moubayed, Sami M. (2006). Cune Press (ed.). [*Steel & Silk: Men and Women who Shaped Syria 1900-2000*](https://books.google.com/books?id=sC-xU8QHSooC). p. 21. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781885942401](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781885942401).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Saunders, Bonnie F. (1996). Greenwood Publishing Group (ed.). [*The United States and Arab Nationalism: The Syrian Case, 1953-1960*](https://books.google.com/books?id=5Z1G0j3_CU8C). p. 11. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9780275954260](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780275954260).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** American Friends of the Middle East, ed. (1954). [*Mission to the Middle East*](https://books.google.com/books?id=9eQ4AAAAIAAJ). p. 1.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Pungong, Victor; Ryan, David (2000). Springer (ed.). [*The United States and Decolonization: Power and Freedom*](https://books.google.com/books?id=8D6JDAAAQBAJ). p. 149. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9780333977958](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780333977958).

v t e Political parties in Syria Popular Front for Change and Liberation People's Will Party Unrepresented Democratic People's Party Communist Labour Party Syrian Turkmen Assembly Syria Turkmen Bloc Syrian Democratic Turkmen Movement Democratic Socialist Arab Ba'ath Party Arab Revolutionary Workers Party Kurdistan Democratic Party of Syria Syriac Union Party Democratic Arab Socialist Union Movement for Justice and Development in Syria Democratic Union Party National Youth Party Kurdish Future Movement Kurdish National Alliance in Syria Reform Party of Syria Defunct parties National Bloc National Party National Union People's Party League of Nationalist Action Arab National Party Arab Ba'ath Party Arab Ba'ath Movement Syrian–Lebanese Communist Party Syrian Communist Party Arab Liberation Movement Socialist Cooperation Party Arab Communist Party Ba'ath Party (Iraqi-dominated faction) National Salvation Front in Syria Banned Parties Islamist Hizb ut-Tahrir Muslim Brotherhood in Syria National Progressive Front Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party pan-Arab organization Syrian Social Nationalist Party Arab Socialist Union Party Socialist Unionist Party Syrian Communist Party (Bakdash) Syrian Communist Party (Unified) National Covenant Party Arab Democratic Union Party Democratic Socialist Unionist Party Social Democratic Unionists Arab Socialist Movement Kurdish parties Kurdistan Democratic Party of Syria Democratic Union Party Kurdish National Council Kurdish Supreme Committee Kurdish Future Movement Kurdish National Alliance in Syria Kurdish Democratic Progressive Party Assyrian parties Assyrian Democratic Organization Syriac Union Party Assyrian Democratic Party Portal:Politics List of political parties Politics of Syria

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Arab Liberation Movement](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Liberation_Movement) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Liberation_Movement?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.