A sectarian attack on Syrian Army cadets that triggered a large-scale government crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria.
Key Facts
- Date
- 16 June 1979
- Perpetrators
- Fighting Vanguard (Muslim Brotherhood splinter)
- Targets
- Syrian Army cadets
- Key organizer
- Ibrahim al-Youssef and Adnan Uqla
- Location
- Aleppo Artillery School, Aleppo, Syria
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Sectarian tensions in Syria between the Alawite-dominated government and segments of the Sunni population, particularly within the militant Fighting Vanguard faction of the Muslim Brotherhood, created a climate of violent opposition. The action was undertaken by Adnan Uqla and Ibrahim al-Youssef without authorization from the broader Fighting Vanguard leadership under Hisham Jumbaz.
On 16 June 1979, a small group of Fighting Vanguard members led by Ibrahim al-Youssef and Adnan Uqla carried out a massacre of Syrian Army cadets at the Aleppo Artillery School. The attack was sectarian in nature and was conducted without sanction from the Fighting Vanguard's official leader, Hisham Jumbaz.
In the aftermath, the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood attempted to distance itself from the massacre by publicly condemning it. However, the Syrian government used the attack as justification to launch a large-scale crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood aimed at suppressing any further organized opposition or violence.