Owners of a Cause, Not Soldiers in Others' Causes: An Intellectual Position in a Time of Genocide
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This position paper documents a profound self-examination undertaken by the author in the context of the ongoing genocide against the Alawi Nusayri community in Syria, following the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024 and the rise of Salafi-jihadist rule. Drawing on direct personal testimony and a historical reading spanning from the fall of the Hamdanid state to the present, the text addresses three interconnected phenomena circulating in Alawi circles: the logic of collective accusation and compulsive disavowal; the structural comparison with Jewish historical experience and its slide toward Zionist identification; and the question of alliances and dependency in a new geopolitical era. The author argues for the recognition of the Alawi Nusayri community as a distinct ethno-religious group, and for political arrangements — including federalism, autonomy, or independence — that guarantee its survival, rights, and dignity on its historical land. The text was written on 16 June 2026. This article is part of the ongoing independent research project Alawites: A Story Yet Unfinished — العلويون: سرد لم يكتمل — a sole-authored scholarly program dedicated to recovering and examining Alawite identity through historical, philosophical, and religious analysis. The project seeks to reconstruct collective memory and situate Alawism within broader intellectual and civilizational contexts, beyond reductive political frameworks.
Author: Abbas, Helin
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7164886981
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