The Ba'ath Party came to power in Syria following the 1963 Syrian coup d'état. Haydar went on to become the Commander of Syria's Special Forces in 1968 after training at the Soviet airborne forces' academy. Haydar remained close to his childhood friend Hafez al-Assad, and supported him in the 1970 Syrian Corrective Revolution, which brought Hafez to power. Haydar provided military support for Hafez during the coup, helping to oust Salah Jadid and President Nureddin al-Atassi.