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In 1983, after Hafez al-Assad suffered an apparent heart attack, he named governing council of six men he believed were unlikely to seize power to run the country in his absence. Rifaat al-Assad was not among them. Hafez al-Assad's prolonged absence caused supporters of Rifaat al-Assad to rally around him, and in 1984 Rifaat launched a bid to take control of Damascus which nearly escalated into a civil war. The tensions only eased when Hafez al-Assad, still ill, addressed the nation and the attempted coup d'état collapsed. Shawkat remained loyal to Hafez al-Assad throughout this period, and he was rewarded with a promotion to colonel.