ABSTRACT
Throughout history, the struggle between the tribes and the state has manifested itself in competition over land, caravan routes and water resources. Historically, imperial powers sought the assistance of the tribes in Northern Arabia to achieve their strategic objectives. After independence, a succession of Syrian governments from 1947 until 1958 issued many decrees, which aimed to break tribal power and limit their influence on the politics of the country. The central government’s attempts ranged from trying to confiscate tribal lands to lowering the number of tribal seats in the Syrian Parliament and forcing tribesmen to do their military service in the national army of the country. Tribal codes of honour and revenge played an important role in igniting the Syrian uprising against the Syrian regime. In response to the regime’s use of force against the protest movement, tribes resorted to armed self-defence against the security forces.
