Reconstructing Baʾathist Syria through Cultural Heritage and State Media

This article analyzes Syrian state media coverage on the reconstruction of the citadel, the Umayyad Mosque and the old souq in Aleppo to investigate how the Syrian Baʾathist state is using destruction and reconstruction of significant cultural heritage to construct a post-war narrative. This narrative promotes an understanding of the Baʾathist state as the protector of Syrian cultural heritage and thus the protector of Syrian nationhood and civilization. The article argues that it is of crucial importance to the Baʾathist state to control the symbolic meaning of the national cultural heritage in its endeavor to create a viable post-war narrative and understands the state media’s coverage of selected reconstruction projects in Aleppo as part of the ongoing battle over how to remember (or forget) the years of upheaval and war. This continued battle over the narrative is essentially a battle over the social memories of the Syrian people and the politically constructed memories of the state.