On December 8, 2024, Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad departed for Russia after militia forces took Damascus. An Al-Qaeda affiliated group led by Abu Mohammed Al-Jolani took power. New York Times columnist Thomas L. Friedman hooted that it was the “biggest . . . most game-changing event in the Middle East in the last 45 years.” Yet until then, Al-Jolani was wanted for terrorism and had a U.S. State Department $10 million bounty on his head since 2017.

Mainstream and even alternative media celebrated Assad?s defeat, making it into a story of popular “rebels” triumphing over “evil.” Erased from the record was Washington’s role in initiating and coordinating this long-standing regime change operation.

Syria: Anatomy of a Regime Change offers the first comprehensive account of the U.S. regime change operation in Syria. The operation was underway ever since Bashar’s father, Hafez-Al Assad, was targeted by the U.S. government because of his support for Arab unity, his nationalist economic program, his support for the Palestinians, and his steadfast opposition to U.S. and Israeli hegemonic designs in the Middle East.

The methods utilized to oust Syria’s leaders fit a long-standing U.S. regime-change playbook applied around the world. Ukraine and Libya are prime examples. Key aspects include a protracted demonization campaign targeting Syria’s leader, imposition of economic sanctions designed to destroy Syria’s economy, and CIA financing of rebel groups under the billion-dollar Operation Timber-Sycamore, the CIA’s largest covert operation since its support for the Afghan mujahadin in the 1980s.