Syria’s Hama full of ‘hope, joy’ one year after al-Assad forces’ exit

One year ago, Bashar al-Assad’s allies were expelled from Syria’s central city of Hama, marking the occasion of the expulsion of thousands of people.

According to Assed Baig from Hama’s al-Assi Square, the city’s atmosphere is one of “hope and belief” in Syria’s future, according to Baig from Al Jazeera.

People are celebrating this day as far as I can tell on roof balconies, Baig said. There is hope for the future, according to the singers, who are waving flags, chanting slogans, and singing.

In a lightning offensive directed at the capital on December 5, 2024, rebels led by Syria’s then-President Ahmed al-Sharaa took control of Hama. Al-Assad fled to Russia and was overthrown by his family’s dynasty after they captured Damascus 24 days later.

Hama, which was the scene of Al-Assad’s brutal uprising under his father, former president Hafez al-Assad, has a special place in his fall.

Government forces bombed and besieged the city while arresting and shooting young men and boys to quell an uprising there. Between 30 000 and 40 000 people, including entire families, were killed, according to the Syrian Network for Human Rights.

People are joyful, according to the saying.

Baig claimed that since his most recent visit, Hama’s atmosphere has significantly changed.

People would yell, “Back then, there was a fear that the wrong word, the wrong sentence, could lead to you being troubled, disappeared to the regime forces’ prison, or worse,” he said. People are now joyful, celebrating, and joyful.

Al-Sharaa, who was previously al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria and then the splinter group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, has led a remarkable turnaround since taking over the reins of Syria, largely restoring the country’s reputation internationally and obtaining significant sanctions relief.

Al-Sharaa, who is president for a five-year transitional period, has visited cities across the Gulf, Europe, and Washington, and this week hosted a delegation from the UN Security Council in Syria.

He took the United Nations General Assembly for the first time in six decades as a leader of Syria.

‘New chapter’

However, there are concerns about Alawite and Druze minority communities in Syria’s heartland, where some government forces and their allies have been linked to and facing charges.

More than 1,700 people were killed in March due to clashes and reprisals against the Alawite community, which al-Assad is a member of, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor.

In addition, according to the monitor, additional clashes in south Syria’s Suwayda province in July left many Druze civilians dead, according to the monitor.

Israel conducted airstrikes in Syria’s south and Damascus, claiming that the operation was aimed at protecting the Druze, a claim that many Druze leaders refuted. Israel continues to carry out deadly incursions and strikes in Syria to this day. Israel launched yet another incursion into Syrian territory in the Damascus countryside, Beit Jinn, last week, killing at least 13 people, including children.

By restoring diplomatic ties and attracting foreign investment, Nanar Hawach, a senior analyst for Syria at the International Crisis Group, claimed that “Syria has opened a new chapter that many once thought impossible.” However, “international rehabilitation means little if all Syrians feel safe walking their own streets.”

Many Syrians still view al-Sharaa as “the only option that provides guarantees,” according to researcher Gamal Mansour of the University of Toronto, who is concerned about the potential chaos a power vacuum might cause.

Source: Aljazeera