Assad Holds Syria Army Despite Sunni-Alawite Divide -- Yahoo News/ReutersAMMAN (Reuters) – Senior Syrian army ranks are packed with loyal members of President Bashar al-Assad's Alawite minority, reducing any prospect of military pressure on him to stand aside if protests grow, military experts say.
Unlike the armies in Tunisia and Egypt, whose refusal to confront non-violent demonstrations spelt the demise of their autocratic rulers, the fate of many senior Syrian military officers is closely tied to that of Assad.
Although some officers from the Sunni Muslim majority have been promoted to senior ranks, Sunni influence has been weakened and Assad's brother Maher controls key military units packed with Alawite soldiers.
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Update #1: Syria military's loyalty to Assad seen as airtight -- AJC/AP
Update #2: FACTBOX-Syria's military: what does Assad have? -- Reuters
My Comment: Many believe that the Syrian government will be the next domino to fall in the Middle East .... but I am not that optimistic. The Alawite minority that rules the country know that if they lose power, retribution and revenge will be the order of the day against them. With this thought .... they will use all the military muscle that they have to stop and/or annihilate their opponents. They have done this in the past .... and I have no doubt that present Syrian leaders like Assad will do this again.
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