1936 Syrian general strike

National BlocNational Action League | French Mandate | National BlocNational Action League | | French Mandate | National BlocNational Action League | | | .mw-parser-output .infobox-columns{display:flex}.mw-parser-output .infobox .infobox-columns-text-left{text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .infobox-columns>div{box-sizing:border-box;width:50%;padding:2px}.mw-parser-output .infobox-columns-3>div{width:33.33%}.mw-parser-output .infobox-columns-4>div{width:25%}.mw-parser-output .infobox-columns>div:not(:first-child){border-left:1px dotted #aaa;padding-left:5px}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}

Damien de Martel Charles Huntziger Taj al-Din al-Hasani

Shukri al-QuwatliKhalil Mardam BeyFaris al-KhouryLutfi al-HaffarNasib al-Bakri | | | | Dozens | | | | At least 3,000 | | |

The Syrian general strike of 1936 (Arabic: الإضراب الستيني, romanized: al-Idrab al-Sitiyni) was a 50-day general strike organized in response to the policy of French occupation of Syria and Lebanon. The strike paralyzed the country for two months and forced France to negotiate the Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence with the National Bloc.

On 11 January 1936, the National Bloc paid tribute to one of its leaders, Ibrahim Hananu, who had died in November 1935. The gathering included several speeches condemning and attacking the French occupation. Shortly afterward, the French Mandate authorities closed the National Bloc office in Damascus and arrested two prominent nationalist leaders of the party, Fakhri al-Baroudi and Sayf al-Din al-Ma'mun. In response, the Bloc called for a strike against French occupation policies.

The strike began on 20 January with work stoppages and student demonstrations in Damascus, Homs, Hama, and Aleppo, and quickly spread to all major cities.

Leaders of the National Bloc, including Nasib al-Bakri, Jamil Mardam Bey, Lutfi al-Haffar, and Faris al-Khoury, actively participated in organizing demonstrations against the French occupation and the French-appointed president Taj al-Din al-Hasani. They demanded the restoration of the 1930 constitution, which had been suspended in 1933. The National Action League supported the strike and helped organize marches and demonstrations in Damascus.

The campaign of civil disobedience paralyzed the economy and quickly brought the country “to the brink of total shutdown”.

French high commissioner Damien de Martel was urgently recalled from Beirut to Damascus to deal with the situation, and General Charles Huntziger, commander of the Army of the Levant, was tasked with restoring order. Several Bloc leaders, including Nasib al-Bakri and Mardam Bey, were exiled, and more than 3,000 people were arrested.

In an attempt to disperse the demonstrations, French troops opened fire on protesters, killing dozens. However, these measures failed to suppress the uprising, which received support from other Arab countries as populations took to the streets in Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, and Jordan in solidarity with the Syrian people.

The French government also faced intense pressure within France from left-wing media and the emerging Popular Front, which called for a complete overhaul of its policy in Syria and Lebanon.

On 2 March, the French authorities yielded and agreed to begin negotiations with the National Bloc. They also granted a general amnesty to those arrested or exiled during the crisis. The Bloc ended the strike on 6 March after the release of its imprisoned leaders.

Later that year, a National Bloc delegation traveled to Paris and signed the Franco-Syrian Treaty of Independence.

• Marcel Homet (1 April 1936). "Les sanglantes émeutes de Syrie". Vu (420): 375–378.