The formerly secular government of Syria is trying to catch some of that Wahhabist wave sweeping through the Arab Islamic world to maintain its cred.

An excerpts from the BBC story:

After ruthlessly crushing a Muslim Brotherhood rebellion in 1982, the Syrian government has found it is unable to contain the rise of religion.

So instead, the authorities have decided to go with the trend and co-opt the symbols of Islam.

"After the clashes of 1980, the state tried to create an official Islam. They encouraged the building of mosques and the creation of religious schools. They think it is a way to control society," Mr Kawakibi said.

"Before, government officials started their speeches with secular phrases, now they start with 'Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim'," the Arabic for, "In the name of God, most gracious, most merciful".

Syria's staunchly secular Baath party encouraged people to go to the mosque in order to keep them away from politics.

The authorities are now warning the international community that if the US wanted to effect regime change in Syria as it did in Iraq, it would bring radical Islamists to power; Islamists in a way created by the state itself.