The Syrian coup d'état of 1966 took place that February 23 and was led by neo-Baath Party members against the country's first Baathist regime. It brought to power Syria's most radical government and was precipitated by a heightening in the power struggle between the party's old guard and younger factions. On 21 February, supporters of the old guard in the army ordered the transfer of their rivals. Two days later, the Military Committee, backing the younger factions, launched a coup that involved bloody fighting in Aleppo, Damascus, Deir ez-Zor, and Latakia. As a result of the coup, the party's historical founders fled the country and spent the rest of their lives in exile. The coup also created a permanent schism between the Syrian and Iraqi branches of the party.

[edit] References

• Commins, David Dean. Historical Dictionary of Syria, p. 105. Scarecrow Press, 2004, ISBN 0810849348.