A Comparative analysis between the Syrian Arab Army and the Afghan National Army and their collapse 

• Leadership and Legitimacy: Feeble governance and lack of legitimacy undermined both Syria’s Assad regime and Afghanistan’s US-backed government, leading to their eventual collapses.
• Military Morale and Cohesion: The Syrian Arab Army and Afghan National Army suffered from low morale, inadequate training, and lack of popular support, resulting in their inability to resist opposition forces.
• Role of Foreign Allies: Dependence on external support from Russia and Iran in Syria and the US in Afghanistan left their militaries vulnerable when this support was withdrawn.
• Diverse Populations and Governance: Failure to foster inclusivity and trust among multi-ethnic populations created grounds for rebellion in both Syria and Afghanistan.

Benevolent dictatorship vs feeble leadership 

A Benevolent Dictatorship is a government in which an authoritarian leader exercises absolute political power over the state but is perceived to do so concerning the benefit of the population as a whole.  In his early years as a Benevolent Dictator of Syria (2000-2001) Bashar al-Assad released hundreds of political prisoners and allowed the first independent newspapers for more than three decades to begin publishing. However, this did not last long as by early 2001 several leading Syrian opposition figures were arrested, and limits on the freedom of the press were put back in place. 

For the rest of the decade, emergency rule remained in effect and economic liberalization appeared to benefit the Syrian elite and its allies. Thus, it can be noted that Assad who began as a ruler as a benevolent dictator later became a tyrannical dictator who was concerned not with the welfare of his people but only with preserving his power.

  Under Assad Syria has been largely a secular society; while promoting plurality, an Alawite (Shia) minority ruled without any pretence of democracy. In the realm of foreign policy Assad strategically aligned with Shia Iran from where Syria received much of its weaponry and funding.  It was through Syria that Iran supplied weapons to its anti-Israel proxies such as Hezbollah in the Levant region of the Middle East. Russia, with its deep interest in a foothold in the Middle East, particularly in the various facilities around the strategic Syrian port city of Latakia on the Mediterranean, the only warm water base with the Russian navy outside the Black Sea also supported Assad’s regime. Assad’s downfall from power began in 2011 when civil war broke out in Syria after the Assad regime targeted exponents of the Arab Spring who were demanding greater democracy. 

The Syrian civil war raged till 2018, involving several players with interest in the region such as Russia and Iran who supported Assad. The United States supported the rebels against the Assad regime due to the latter’s anti-Israel, pro-Iran approach. The Gulf nations, led by Saudi Arabia and Turkey, too joined indirectly in support of the anti-Assad opposition forces, converting a political civil war into an ideological one. 

The overthrow of Assad’s regime in December 2024 by the Sunni Islamist armed group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) can be attributed to three reasons. First, the utter mismanagement of governance by Assad, led to people’s support switching completely to the opposition. Second is the weakening of the Iranian hold over the Levant as a result of the weakening of its proxies like Hezbollah in the recent conflict with Israel. The deterrent presence of Russian special forces and the Russian air force became less effective as the Ukraine war had a debilitating effect on Russian military capabilities in the Middle East. 

In the case of Afghanistan, the United States assumed that the government of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was legitimate because it had been elected under US democratic norms. Only around 1.8 million Afghans out of 9.7 million registered voters and a population of 31.6 million people voted in the last Afghan national elections. By contrast, when a United Nations mission led by Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi tried to recreate an Afghan government after the collapse of the first Taliban government in 2001, Brahimi reached deep into Afghan history and culture and convened a Loya Jirga, a traditional council of regional leaders that deliberates important national questions. The process was a messy one. The United Nations couldn’t control it. However, the Afghan government that emerged from the Loya Jirga process enjoyed more legitimacy and standing than the so-called democratically elected government. 

However, the US soon abandoned the Loya Jirga Process in favour of a Parliamentary democratic system in Afghanistan which failed to gain legitimacy among large sections of Afghanistan’s population. This resulted in the US-supported Afghan government of President Ashraf Ghani being so feeble that the Taliban was able to quickly overthrow it in August 2021 soon after the withdrawal of US military forces from Afghanistan. 

 Morale, Training and Values of the Army 

 The morale, training and values of an army in a diverse multi-ethnic country play an important role in determining whether the army will be able to be effective as a fighting military force.  The Indian army is an example where morale, training and values played an important role in forging an effective military fighting force in a diverse multi-ethnic country like India.   According to the official Indian army website  the values of the Indian army infused in the Indian soldier through years of training are enumerated below : 

• Espirit de Corps:  The Spirit of comradeship and brotherhood of the soldier, regardless of caste, creed or religion. 
• Spirit of Selfless Sacrifice:  The tradition is never to question, but do or die for the three “N’s “;  Naam, i.e. name -honour – of the unit /Army / Nation, ‘ Namak’ ( salt ) i.e. loyalty to the Nation, and ‘Nishan ’, i.e. the insignia or flag of his unit/regiment / Army / Nation 
• Valour:  Fearlessness in combat and in the face of the enemy even when fighting against great odds or even when facing death 
• Non-Discrimination: The Indian army does not discriminate on account of caste, creed or religion. 
• Fairness and Honesty: The belief that the Indian soldier fights for a righteous cause or Dharma that extends even to the enemy (prisoner or wounded) forms an important part of the Indian army’s training imparted to its soldiers and officers.
• Fidelity, Honor and Courage:  The belief is instilled among Indian army officers and soldiers that the honour and integrity of the nation rests on their shoulders and that they are the last line of defence and hence cannot fail the nation 
• Death to Dishonour:  The concept of ‘IZZAT’ (HONOUR) in the clan/ unit enables Indian soldiers to shun the fear of death; to be called a coward in the peer group is worse than death 
• Forthrightness: An Indian army soldier, especially an army officer has to be forthright, for in his word the soldiers he leads are going to lay down their lives without questioning why. 

The famous motto of Chetwood Hall in the Indian Military Academy is imbibed in every Indian army officer “The Safety, Honour and Welfare of your Country come First Always and Every Time.  The Honour, Welfare and Comfort of the Men You Command Come Next.  Your Ease, Comfort and Safety Come Last Always And Every Time”. 

 These values which were inherited from the British colonial period as well as from India’s rich military heritage in the ancient and medieval periods enabled the Indian army to maintain its morale and combat cohesion during the various wars and armed conflicts India fought against Pakistan and China after independence.  

When deployed for internal counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations in regions such as Jammu and Kashmir and the North East States Indian army personnel operate on the principle of using minimal force wherein heavy weapons such as artillery and air power are not used as the populations residing in these regions are considered by the Indian state to be Indian citizens and not external adversaries. 

Another important aspect of the Indian army’s role in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations within India’s borders is engaging in social welfare activities such as building and running educational and medical facilities in disturbed areas such as Jammu and Kashmir and the North East States as part of its Winning Hearts and Minds Campaign (WHAM).  The most visible example in this regard is Operation Sadbhavana in Jammu and Kashmir and  North East states such as Assam. The aim behind such WHAM campaigns is to foster greater trust and cooperation between the Indian army and the local civilian population to isolate and target the insurgent and terrorist groups operating in these disturbed areas. 

The Indian army leadership has also laid down guidelines that strictly prohibit Indian army personnel from indulging in crimes against the local civilian population such as rape, molestation, torture and fake encounter killings when deployed for counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations within India’s borders. 

The Indian army has taken serious disciplinary and legal actions against its officers and soldiers when they are found guilty of such human rights violations. Statistics put out by the Indian army till 2019 reveal that of the 1,053 allegations of human rights violations received from Jammu and Kashmir by the human rights cell of the Indian army, 1,030 were investigated and 999 were found to be baseless. In the cases of the thirty-one allegations that were found to be true, seventy Indian army personnel were given punishments that included dismissal from service and rigorous imprisonment. Compensation was awarded in eighteen cases. Twenty-three cases are still under investigation. 

Apart from the Indian army’s value system and its approach to handling internal conflicts India’s democratic political system requires army officers and soldiers to swear an oath of allegiance to the Indian constitution and the Indian state and not to any particular political party or leader in power.  The Indian army is also a volunteer army. These aspects distinguish the Indian army from the armies of other diverse multi-ethnic countries such as Syria and Afghanistan. 

In the case of Syria, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) swore an oath of allegiance to Assad and his Baath Party. This resulted in the SAA being the army of a particular political party and leader and not the army of the Syrian state. The SAA’s use of heavy weapons such as artillery and airpower against the armed rebel Syrian opposition groups during Syria’s civil war resulted in heavy civilian casualties which resulted in the SAA losing the trust and support of Syria’s diverse population comprising Sunni Muslims, Druze Christians, Alawite Shia Muslims and Kurds. The SAA soldiers were not volunteers and were forcibly conscripted to serve in the SAA and were not paid proper salaries which only further affected their already low morale. 

When Assad’s foreign allies namely Russia and Iran withdrew their military support to the SAA due to their preoccupations with their regional conflicts the SAA officers and soldiers deserted their military posts and fled due to loss of morale and lack of support from the Syrian population.  The SAA’s loss of morale enabled the Sunni Islamist Group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) to overthrow Assad’s regime in December 2024. 

In the case of Afghanistan, the larger Afghan National Army (ANA) of 300,000 soldiers performed well against the smaller Taliban army of 75,000 people when American military commanders and soldiers were embedded with ANA units to make decisions and decide when and how to fight. However, when the US military forces began withdrawing from Afghanistan under the terms of the 2020 Doha agreement the ANA collapsed due to loss of morale and lack of professional military leadership. The collapse of the ANA enabled the Taliban to overthrow the US-backed Afghan government of President Ashraf Ghani. 

Another important factor behind the ANA’s collapse was widespread corruption in Afghanistan’s defence ministry as well as the perception among many Afghans particularly the Pashtun tribes of Southern Afghanistan that the ANA was an instrument of oppression by a puppet Afghan government supported by the United States.  This enabled the Taliban to gain a popular support base in Southern Afghanistan for their armed insurgency against the US-backed Afghan government. Thus, the United States post-2001 failed to establish an Afghan army that was self-sufficient with professional military leadership and which equally represented all of Afghanistan’s major ethnic groups namely the Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbeks and Hazaras.

References:

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Dhruv Ashok

Dhruv Ashok is a PhD research scholar from Christ (Deemed to be University), Bangalore. He writes on current affairs and international politics. His areas of interest include conflict resolution and historical narratives. Views expressed are the author’s own.