DAMASCUS: Syria’s militant leader on Friday called on people across the country to celebrate the “victory of the revolution” as G7 leaders sought to forge a common approach to a new government.
More than half a century of brutal rule by the Assad family began after a fierce offensive by extremists led by Abu Mohammed al-Golani’s Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) swept across the country and took control of the capital. came to an abrupt end on Sunday. .
Ousted President Bashar al-Assad has fled Syria, ending an era in which suspected rebels were jailed or killed and nearly 14 years of war that has killed more than 500,000 people and displaced millions. It put an end to it.
“I want to congratulate the great Syrian people on the blessed revolutionary victory and call on them to take to the streets and express their joy,” Golani said in a telegram.
Mr Golani, who now uses his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa, will attend Friday prayers at Damascus’s landmark Umayyad Mosque.
In the early days of the 2011 Syrian uprising, protesters often gathered after midday prayers on Fridays, the Muslim day of prayer and rest.
The overthrow of Assad’s regime prompted Syrians to flood prisons, hospitals and morgues in search of long-missing loved ones, hoping for a miracle or at least closure.
“I turned the world upside down,” Abu Mohammed said as he searched for news of three missing relatives at Damascus’ Madzeh Air Base.
“But we couldn’t find anything. We just want a hint of where they were, one percent.”
The Sunni Muslim HTS has roots in Syria’s al-Qaeda affiliate, has been designated a terrorist organization by many Western governments, and now faces challenges on how to approach the country’s new interim leadership. I am doing it.
The group has sought to tone down its rhetoric, with the transitional government insisting that the rights of all Syrians will be protected.
Obaida al-Nawout, a spokesman for the newly formed government, said the country’s constitution and parliament would be suspended for a three-month transition period.
“A justice and human rights commission will be established to examine the constitution and propose amendments,” he said, pledging to introduce the “rule of law.”
G7 leaders, scheduled to meet virtually on Friday at 14:30 Japan time, said they were ready to support Syria’s transition to an “inclusive and non-sectarian” government.
They emphasized “the importance of holding the Assad regime accountable for its crimes,” and called for the protection of human rights, including those of women and minorities.
For now, the focus in much of Syria is on unraveling the secrets of the Assad regime, particularly on the network of detention centers and torture sites that dot the areas previously under government control. Emphasis is placed on elucidating the likely locations.
The Syrian leadership says it is ready to cooperate with the US government in finding Americans who disappeared under the Assad regime, including American journalist Austin Tice, who was abducted in 2012.
Another American, Travis Timmerman, has already been found alive, and Blinken said Washington is working to bring him home.
On Thursday, hundreds of Syrians gathered to bury outspoken activist Mazen al-Hamada, bringing the search for other missing persons to an even more painful end.
While in exile in the Netherlands, he publicly testified about the torture he suffered in a Syrian prison.
He then returned to Syria and was detained. His body was among more than 30 bodies found in a Damascus hospital morgue this week.
Assad was supported by Russia (a senior Russian official told US media he had fled), as well as Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
The militants launched their attacks on November 27, the same day a cease-fire took effect in the Israel-Hezbollah war and Israel inflicted staggering losses on Assad’s ally Lebanon.
Both Israel and Turkiye, which backs some of the militants who ousted President Assad, have since carried out attacks in Syria.
The fall of the Assad regime has prompted some of the millions of Syrians who fled the country to return home.
On Friday morning, around 60 people were waiting to reach Syria at the Onkpinar border crossing in Turkiye.
The southern city of Suweida, the heart of Syria’s Druze minority, has been home to anti-government protests for more than a year, with hundreds of people taking to the streets on Friday, singing and clapping in joy. .
“Words cannot express our joy,” said Haitham Hudayfa, 54. “Every province is celebrating this great victory.”
