Explaining Sectarian Dynamics in the Syrian Governorate of Deir Ezzor Through the Lens of Instrumentalism and Historical Sociology

This paper traces the rise of sectarianism in the Syrian governorate of Deir Ezzor from the 1970s up to the current civil war. To this end, this research will focus on answering two main questions: “what factors made sectarianism prevalent in Deir Ezzor after 2003?” and “how did attempts by the Syrian regime, Iran, and Islamists to use sectarianism to mobilize people, lead to the catastrophe in Deir Ezzor during the Syrian civil war?” The primordial framework that considers sectarianism to be a consequence of age-old religious differences between Sunni and Shiʿite Muslims is rejected in this paper. This paper shows that a better understanding of sectarianism can be found through a synthesis of instrumentalism and historical sociology. The historical sociology framework provides an understanding of how adverse socioeconomic conditions and security threats in Deir Ezzor led to the rise of sectarianism, whilst instrumentalism explains how the regime, Iran, and the Islamists used sectarian identities to retain control over the population of Deir Ezzor.