[brazzaville]

Good morning.
"Actually, the Syrian regime is controlled by Shi'ites. A splinter group that even other Shi'ites consider weird."

I've always thought that the regime in Syria was Baathist, the last Baathist regime, and that the Baathists were more secular and nationalistic than religious.

When it comes to Islam, I've always thought they are closer to Sunni than Shia, but not as religious as either groups.

Michael Frazier

[Restorer]

The Syrian regime is not explicitly religious or sectarian, just as Saddam's wasn't.

However, as with Saddam's regime, most political power is held by members of a minority group. In Iraq these were the Sunnis.

In Syria they are the Alawites, a Shi'ite group that believes Ali was actually an incarnation of God. Given the general Muslim belief that God never was incarnated and that Mohammed was the last prophet it is not surprising that other Muslims consider them heretics.