The First Haqqi al-Azm government was formed on 1 December 1920 by decree signed by the High Commissioner and published in issue no. 170 of the official al-Asima gazette in 1920. It was dismissed on 28 June 1922.
Overview
Due to France's partitioning of Syria into separate statelets along sectarian and ethnic lines, the jurisdiction and authority of this government, as well as its predecessor, were limited solely to the borders of the State of Damascus.
In State of Aleppo, the head of state was Kamil al-Qudsi. The Alawite government was administered first by Colonel Niéger and later by General Billotte, while Emir Salim al-Atrash governed Jabal al-Druze. This period came to an end when the statelets of Damascus, Aleppo, and the Alawite State were united under the name of the Federation of the Autonomous States of Syria.
The dismissal and dissolution of the government followed the outbreak of a general strike in Damascus beginning on 10 April 1922, followed by demonstrations and arrests on 18 April in protest against partition and the mandate. Although Henri Gouraud issued a decree imposing martial law and later declared a general amnesty for all detainees, he failed to calm the protests. Consequently, on 28 June 1922, he announced the establishment of the Syrian Federation between the State of Damascus, the State of Aleppo, and the Alawite State on a federal basis, and called for a constituent assembly of fifteen members to elect the federation's president, who would then form the new government. This led to the dismissal of the government on the same day.
This government did not exercise significant sovereign authority. As a mandate administration, it was limited to managing administrative affairs and lacked both a military arm represented by an army and an economic arm represented by a central bank.
Composition
See also Council of Ministers (Syria) List of Syrian governments Government ministries of Syria List of prime ministers of Syria
References