Tribal violence, a new setback in Syrian society

Tribal violence, a new setback in Syrian society

Aseerat Hauran – Busra

The war in Syria has played a role in sidelining the authority of the law in many Syrian rural areas, leading to a gap in social order and security.

To fill this gap, there has been a regression, and authority has returned to social customs, which had a lesser impact on civil society. This vacuum contributed to the resurgence of tribal manifestations, even though they had been steadily declining in the decade preceding the war. However, they reemerged with strength.

These customs were accompanied by various forms of physical and psychological violence. Since the first martyrs fell in Syria on March 18, 2011, in the city of Daraa, their families counsidered it a tribal duty to seek revenge for them. They believed that neglecting this matter would be a stain of shame on them.

However, those with wisdom and judgment rejected this, and they countered this desire with calls for peaceful protests, attempting to control matters before they spiraled out of control. Yet, events unfolded towards more tension and anger. As the situation developed, Syrians found themselves in a state of complete absence of the rule of law, facing the natural human need to survive.

The natural human need is turned to in times of life-shattering shocks. As society regressed towards tribalism once again, and since the territories inhabited by these tribes were intertwined, it led to many tribal problems, sometimes escalating to revenge and conflict, as happened in the city of Ankhel in the northern countryside and in the city of Tafas in the western countryside of Hauran.

Some clashes occurred among armed groups, primarily composed of tribal backgrounds. Consequently, vendettas returned to the forefront, and blood accounts were presented that needed settling among themselves, as happened in the town of Tayyibah – with its tribal Zoubi character – and armed individuals from the town of Naseeb from the Rady family. New tribal violence erupted among them due to recent events, but the recent expansion of violence was linked to each tribe’s alliances with other tribes.

The society’s plunge into tribalism, coupled with the absence of social interfaces to comprehend the situation, amidst the chaos of weapon proliferation and the foggy scene, are all extremely dangerous factors. They pose challenging dilemmas for Syrian society, requiring significant effort to move towards a state of citizenship governed by justice and respect for the law.”