Syria's Baath Party Announces Suspension of Activities After Power Shift in Country
10:31 12.12.2024 (Updated: 11:26 12.12.2024)
© AP Photo / Bassem TellawiThe Syrian parliament building in Damascus, Friday March 4, 2005, where Syrian President Bashar Assad is expected to deliver a speech on Saturday, covering the deployment of Syrian troops in Lebanon.
© AP Photo / Bassem Tellawi
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BEIRUT (Sputnik) - The Baath Party was founded in Syria in 1946 and adopted a socialist and national Arab ideology. Party branches emerged in many countries in the region, including Lebanon, Jordan, Libya and Saudi Arabia. It became the ruling party in Syria in 1963, while in Iraq, it remained in power from the mid-1960s until the early 2000s.
The Baath Party, which ruled Syria before the change of power, announced on Wednesday the suspension of its activities until further notice.
"After analyzing the political, social and economic situation, based on national interests, the leadership has made the following decision: to suspend the actions and activities of the party in all its manifestations until further notice," the party said in a statement published by Syrian newspaper Al Watan.
The party will transfer all equipment and weapons to police departments, according to the statement.
"All material assets will be transferred to the disposal of the finance ministry under the patronage of the justice ministry," the statement said.
Syrian armed opposition captured the capital of Damascus on Sunday. Russian officials have said that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stepped down after holding negotiations with participants of the Syrian conflict and left Syria for Russia, where he was granted asylum. Mohammed al-Bashir, who ran an Idlib-based administration formed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and other opposition groups, was named interim prime minister on Tuesday.