The rebel leader, Sharaa, held a meeting with outgoing prime minister Mohammed al-Jalali “to arrange a smooth transfer of power that ensures the continued provision of services” to the people of Syria.
New Delhi:
Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, also known as Ahmed al-Sharaa, the Syrian rebel leader behind the rapid offensive that ended Bashar al-Assad’s rule, has stated that the new government will pursue senior officials responsible for torture and abuses under the previous regime.
Sharaa met with the outgoing prime minister, Mohammed al-Jalali, “to coordinate a transfer of power that ensures the continued provision of services” to the people of Syria, according to a statement posted on the rebels’ Telegram channels.
The statement further emphasized that the new government “will not hesitate to hold accountable the criminals, murderers, and security and army officers involved in torturing the Syrian people.”
The opposition to Bashar al-Assad’s regime began in 2011, but his brutal crackdown resulted in the deaths of around half a million people and forced many others to flee the country. With the backing of allies Russia and Iran, Assad was able to fend off rebel offensives for over a decade. However, with his allies preoccupied with conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, Assad became vulnerable, and the rebels seized the opportunity. As rebel tanks advanced into Damascus, Assad fled Syria, bringing an end to his family’s five-decade rule.
The regime change in Syria has brought new hope to the thousands of inmates in the country’s prisons and detention centers, many of whom were imprisoned for opposing the government.
According to AFP, thousands of people gathered outside Saydnaya prison near Damascus, notorious for the worst atrocities of Assad’s regime, to search for their missing relatives.
Over 100,000 inmates are believed to have died in Syrian prisons—through executions and natural causes—during Assad’s rule, as reported by the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights in 2021. Among them, more than 30,000 perished in Saydnaya alone. An investigation by Amnesty International revealed that “murder, torture, enforced disappearances, and extermination” at Saydnaya since 2011 were part of a widespread and systematic attack on civilians, carried out in line with state policy. The prison was infamous for its brutal conditions, earning it the nickname “human slaughterhouse.”
With Assad’s departure, the families of these long-detained prisoners, some of whom have been imprisoned for years, are desperately searching for them. Aida Taha, 65, is searching for her brother, who was arrested in 2012. “I ran like crazy. But I found out that some prisoners were still in the basements. There are three or four floors underground,” she told AFP.
Many of the prisoners who managed to escape from the now-emptied prisons are wandering the streets of Damascus, showing clear signs of torture and starvation.
A civil servant from the finance ministry shared how fearful people had been under Assad’s rule: “It’s indescribable. We never thought this nightmare would end. We are reborn. We were afraid to speak for 55 years, even at home. We used to say the walls had ears,” said Rim Ramadan, 49, to AFP.
Syria’s parliament, once a stronghold of Assad, now claims to support “the will of the people to build a new Syria toward a better future governed by law and justice.” The Baath Party has also expressed its support for a “transitional phase” aimed at preserving the unity of the country.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which led the rebel groups’ offensive, had previously been banned by Western powers due to its links with Al-Qaeda. Over time, however, the group has attempted to soften its image.
As Syria looks to rebuild, Germany and France have expressed readiness to cooperate with the new leadership, but only on the basis of fundamental human rights and protection for ethnic and religious minorities. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has stated that HTS must renounce “terrorism and violence” before the UK can engage with them. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized that Washington is committed to preventing the re-establishment of safe havens for IS in Syria, saying, “We have a clear interest in doing what we can to avoid the fragmentation of Syria, mass migrations from Syria, and, of course, the export of terrorism and extremism.”
The UN has stated that the Assad regime must be held accountable. While reports suggest the ousted leader has fled to Russia, the Kremlin has not confirmed these claims.
