History Characters / MTNOSyria

* AllohistoricalAllusion: In our timeline, Rifaat Al-Assad tried to coup the Syrian government after his brother was unable to properly govern due to health issues. The coup was a failure, and Rifaat, who had been Hafez's designated successor, was disgraced and sent into exile. In this timeline, Hafez Al-Assad was unable to recover from his heart attack and passed away. Syria fell into disarray for an entire year, allowing Rifaat to rally support from the military to purge his rivals and entrench himself in power.

->'''Ideology:''' Neo-Ba'athism[[note]]Despotism[[/note]], Personalistic Dictatorship[[note]]Despotism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Arab Winter, Syrian Civil War]]), Transitioning Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] (Arab Spring), Dominant-Party Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Arab Winter, Ba'athism Legitimized]])

->'''Ideology:''' Neo-Ba'athism[[note]]Despotism[[/note]], Personalistic Dictatorship[[note]]Despotism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral defeat, Successful Self-Coup]]), Transitioning Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] (Arab Spring Democratization), Dominant-Party Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral victory]])

* CrapsaccharineWorld: Syria isn't the worst place to live in. Living standards are actually quite decent, and the country has the necessary infrastructure and resources to continue developing its economy without any issues. People go about their day as usual, and the streets are mostly safe. However, there is deep, widespread dissatisfaction with the Assadist dictatorship that could boil into violence at any moment, whereas Syria is ruled by a brutal, kleptocratic dictator who is known to have massacred and tortured anyone who dared to stand up against him and his family. It's only a matter of time before things get worse.
* {{Cincinnatus}}: [[spoiler:If he loses the elections, he can choose to concede and allow for a peaceful transfer of power to the opposition, retiring from politics afterwards and focusing on his business career and personal life instead.]]

* FullCircleRevolution: If the Ba'ath Party wins Syria's first elections, the opposition will slowly break apart and fail to provide any meaningful opposition to the Ba'ath Party, allowing them to stay in power for the next few years. This leads Syria right back to where it was before the Arab Spring, with the Ba'ath Party still on top, only this time with a democratic façade.
* {{Realpolitik}}: Under Rifaat Al-Assad, Syria has sought a more independent foreign policy disconnected from Ba'athist ideology. In practice, this has meant that Syria has distanced itself from its former allies and have pursued warmer relations with the Americans and the Saudis.
* StateSec: The ''Brigades for the Defense of the Revolution'', simply known as the Defense Companies, is an all-Alawite paramilitary force that specializes on special operations and urban warfare. The Defense Companies were responsible for brutally crushing the Islamist Uprisings during the eighties and their continued existence makes Syrians think twice before trying to rise up against Assad.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Shortly after the United Arab Republic (of which Syria was a founding member of) broke apart, Assad and his clique of military officers couped the Syrian government and ousted President Aflaq in a "Corrective Revolution". This led to Syria becoming estranged from other Ba'athist states, failing to reconcile with them over ideological differences. In MTNO, Syria is closer to the Saudis, who are considered the mortal enemies of Ba'athism.
* WildCard: Syria's foreign policy is unpredictable at best. The country acts on its own interests and is willing to switch sides so long as it benefits them.

->'''Ideology:''' Neo-Ba'athism[[note]]Despotism[[/note]], Personalistic Dictatorship[[note]]Despotism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral defeat, Successful Self-Coup]]), Transitioning Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] (Arab Spring Democratization), Controlled Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral victory]])

* StateSec: The ''Brigades for the Defense of the Revolution'', simply known as the Defense Companies, is an all-Alawite paramilitary that specializes on special operations and urban warfare. The Defense Companies were responsible for brutally crushing the Islamist Uprisings during the eighties and their continued existence makes Syrians think twice before trying to rise up against Assad.

->'''Party:''' Ḥizb al-Ba'th al-'Arabī al-Ishtirākī – Quṭr Sūriyā[[note]]Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party - Syria Region[[/note]], al-Lajnah al-ʻAskarīyah al-Thawrīyah li-Ḥizb al-Baʻth[[note]]Revolutionary Military Committee of the Ba'ath Party[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral Defeat, Successful Self-Coup]])

* TheCoup: After Hafez Al-Assad died of a heart attack in 1983, Rifaat, who was the designated successor, would rally the military by his side over the following year and purge the party of his rivals, securing his position as Syria's President.

->'''Ideology:''' Neo-Ba'athism[[note]]Despotism[[/note]], Personalistic Dictatorship ([[spoiler:Electoral defeat, Successful Self-Coup]]), Transitioning Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] (Arab Spring democratization), Controlled Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral victory]])

* CrapsaccharineWorld: Syria isn't the worst place to live in. Living standards are actually quite decent, and the country has the necessary infrastructure and resources to continue developing its economy without any issues. People go about their day as usual, and the streets are mostly safe. However, there is deep, widespread dissatisfaction with the Assadist dictatorship that could boil into violence at any moment, whereas Syria is ruled by a brutal, kleptocratic dictator who is known to have massacred and tortured anyone who dared to stand up against him and his family.

* AllohistoricalAllusion: The Syrian government's attempts to open up the political system under increasing pressure from opponents of the regime mirrors the [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damascus_Spring Damascus Spring]] in our timeline.

* {{Realpolitik}}: Under Rifaat Al-Assad, Syria has sought a more independent foreign policy disconnected from Pan-Arabism. In practice, this has meant that Syria has distanced itself from its former Ba'athist allies and have pursued warmer relations with the Americans and the Saudis.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Shortly after the United Arab Republic (of which Syria was a founding member) broke apart, Assad and his clique of military officers couped the Syrian government and ousted President Aflaq in a "Corrective Revolution". This led to Syria becoming estranged from other Ba'athist states, failing to reconcile with them over ideological differences. In MTNO, Syria is closer to the Saudis, making them the enemies of Ba'athism.
* WildCard: Syria's foreign policy is unpredictable at best and prone to contradictory behavior. The country jumps the fence between the Saudis and Iraqis constantly and other Ba'athist states know not to trust the Syrians completely.

* AllohistoricalAllusion: In our timeline, Rifaat Al-Assad tried to coup the Syrian government after his brother was unable to properly govern due to health issues. The coup was a failure, and Rifaat, who had been Hafez's designated successor, was disgraced and sent into exile. In this timeline, Hafez Al-Assad was unable to recover from his heart attack and passed away. Syria fell into disarray for an entire year, allowing Rifaat to rally support from the party and the military to purge his rivals and entrench himself in power.

%%[[folder:General Tropes]]
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* TheCoup: After Hafez Al-Assad died of a heart attack in 1983, Rifaat, who was the designated successor, would win over the support of the military over the following year and coup the provisional troika that had taken power after Hafez's death.
* OpportunisticBastard: He has no personal ideology or convictions and has chased after power for the sole reason of enriching himself and [[{{Nepotism}}his family.]]
* SketchySuccessor: While Hafez was no saint, he at least introduced some pragmatic reforms that generally benefitted Syrians, and was still convicted to Pan-Arabism. Rifaat, on the other hand, is a selfish kleptocrat who has done nothing for Syria and its people.

[[folder:General Tropes]]

[[/folder]]

->'''Ideology:''' Neo-Ba'athism[[note]]Despotism[[/note]] (Default), Personalistic Dictatorship ([[spoiler:Electoral Defeat, Successful Self-Coup]]), Transitioning Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] (Arab Spring Democratization), Controlled Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral Victory]])

* TheCoup: After Hafez Al-Assad died of a heart attack in 1983, Rifaat, who was the designated successor, would win over the support of the military over the following year and coup the provisional troika that had taken power after Hafez's death.

->'''Party:''' Ḥizb al-Ba'th al-'Arabī al-Ishtirākī – Quṭr Sūriyā[[note]]Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party - Syria Region[[/note]]
->'''Ideology:''' Neo-Ba'athism[[note]]Despotism[[/note]] (Default, [[spoiler:Electoral Defeat, Successful Self-Coup]]), Transitioning Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] (Arab Spring Democratization), Controlled Democracy[[note]]Paternalism[[/note]] ([[spoiler:Electoral Victory]])