Latest news with #alNusraFront
Ya Libnan
2 days ago
- Politics
- Ya Libnan
Druze demand self determination in largest protest held since deadly clashes in Syria
The Druze people demonstrated in Syria's southern city of Sweida and elsewhere on Saturday to demand the right to self determination for the Druze minority, in the largest protests to take place since deadly clashes in the area last month. Some of the protesters waved Israeli flags to thank Israel for intervening on their side during heavy clashes in mid-July between militias of the Druze minority and armed tribal groups and government forces. Protesters raised Druze flags and pictures of Sheikh al-Aql Hikmat al-Hajri. They chanted, 'Sweida is free, free… al-Golani must get out.' Protesters also held up signs reading, 'The right to self-determination is a sacred right for Sweida,' 'We demand the opening of a humanitarian crossing,' and 'Expel the General Security forces from our villages.' Some posters thanked Israel for intervening on their side during the heavy clashes in mid-July between the Druze and government forces Interim president Ahmed Sharra used to be known as Abu Mohammad Al Golani, when he headed up the al Qaeda linked al Nusra Front which created many problems for the Druze community Saturday's demonstration comes as Syria grapples with deep ethnic and religious divisions following the collapse of the Assad regime last December. The transition has proven fragile, with renewed violence erupting against the Aalwites in March along the coast and in July in Sweida, a city with a significant Druze population, highlighting the continued threat to peace after years of civil war. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Syrian war monitor, said the protesters expressed their rejection of the interim central government in Damascus and demanded that those responsible for atrocities against Druze be brought to justice. Rayyan Maarouf, who heads the activist media collective Suwayda 24, said Saturday's demonstration in Sweida was the largest since last months's clashes, and that there were similar gatherings in areas including the nearby towns of Shahba and Salkhad. He added that this is the first time people protested under the slogan of self determination. 'This is an unprecedented change for the Druze in Syria,' Maarouf told The Associated Press. Clashes erupted on July 13 between Druze militias and local Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes in Sweida. Government forces then intervened, nominally to restore order, but ended up essentially siding with the Bedouins against the Druze. Israel intervened in defence of the Druze, launching dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters and even striking the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters in central Damascus. Atrocities were committed during the clashes that left hundreds of people dead. The new interim government set up a committee last month tasked with investigating attacks on civilians in the sectarian violence in the country's south. It is supposed to issue a report within three months. The Druze religious sect began as a 10th-century offshoot of Ismailism, a branch of Islam. Over half of the roughly 1 million Druze worldwide live in Syria. Most other Druze live in Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, including in the Golan Heights, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast War and annexed in 1981. Fear According to observers 'More than a decade after the Syrian revolution began, a new chapter is being written—but instead of hope, it is soaked in fear, especially for Syria's minority communities. With the collapse of the Assad regime, the rise of a Sunni-majority leadership under figures like Ahmed al-Sharaa has brought not stability, but renewed anxiety. Minorities such as the Druze, Alawites, and Christians—once wary of Assad but now terrified of what follows—are facing systematic violence and abandonment. Thousands have been killed since Sharaa took over' The observers added: 'These aren't isolated incidents. They are part of a disturbing pattern that suggests the new rulers are either unwilling or incapable of protecting Syria's rich mosaic of identities. The result is a growing exodus, as minorities increasingly view departure as their only guarantee of survival.' 'This failure to govern inclusively not only betrays Syria's remaining social fabric, but it opens the door to international fragmentation. External powers, already present in Syria in various forms, are monitoring closely. Some may seek to intervene under the guise of humanitarian concern; others may exploit the chaos to carve out influence. Either path leads to the same end: the partition of Syria into sectarian or ethnic cantons, forever ending the dream of a unified state.' AP/ YL
Asharq Al-Awsat
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Angry at Sharaa!
Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa has a knack for politics. He owes his political instincts to his layered character, his remarkable personal journey that took him from the leader of the al-Nusra Front to President of Syria in a few years, and a keen reader of the lessons of history. Sharaa has not succumbed to popular pressure as previous leaders had, most notably President Gamal Abdel Nasser. The latter paid a heavy price for going along with the masses. Sharaa understands popular sentiment can sweep you and turn you into a hostage, limiting your options at every pivotal juncture. Sharaa has clearly learned from the experiences of President Anwar Sadat, who went against the popular mood and even key figures in his regime but retrieved the Sinai and averted new wars that would have destroyed Egypt. What also distinguishes Sharaa is that he does not exploit obsolete cliches. We are tired of this rigid ideological jargon. He speaks simply and frankly - no equivocation or prevarication. Devastated and divided, Syria does not need an orator seeking glory, but rather a realistic, rational leader who can responsibly address its complex crises. The extremists who celebrated his arrival in Damascus believed that he would resume the Brotherhood's moment in the "Arab Spring," turning Syria into a hub for jihadists. When their hopes were dashed, they began attacking Sharaa instead of praising him. But the question is: Would they have cursed him today if he had declared jihad? Or waged a futile war with Israel? Or clashed with his Arab neighbors? Or made inflammatory insults against the "Great Satan" and "colonial" powers? Certainly not. They would have glorified him as the "jihadist leader." Meanwhile, the Syrian people alone would have paid the price: another 50 years of poverty and displacement. Fortunately, Sharaa chose another path: rationality, state-building, and restoring the Syrian economy. He avoids empty slogans and boisterous rhetoric, preferring dry but effective technocratic discourse that furthers the national interest and rejects blackmail. "Syria First" is the slogan, and it is the gateway to rebuilding trust between Syria and the international community. That's why Saudi Arabia threw its political and economic weight behind Syria and contributed to the effort to ensure sanctions relief, removing one of the most significant obstacles to Syria's recovery. Syria needs patience and time, but the path has become clear. Indeed, we would have reason to worry if the extremists and mendacious orators had praised him.
Yahoo
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump envoy praises new Syrian president for ‘counter-ISIS measures'
Donald Trump's old friend Thomas Barrack, now serving as the US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, praised Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, after a meeting in Istanbul on Saturday. 'I stressed the cessation of sanctions against Syria will preserve the integrity of our primary objective – the enduring defeat of ISIS – and will give the people of Syria a chance for a better future,' Barrack said in a statement, referring to actions taken on Friday by the Trump administration to temporarily suspend sanctions imposed on the government of the former president, Bashar al-Assad, who was deposed by rebel forces led by Sharaa late last year. Syria had been under US sanctions since 1979, which intensified after 2011's deadly crackdown on peaceful protesters by Assad. 'I also commended President al-Sharaa on taking meaningful steps towards enacting President Trump's points on foreign terrorist fighters, counter-ISIS measures, relations with Israel, and camps and detention centers,' Barrack added. Those conditions put Sharaa in the position of cracking down on his former allies. Sharaa, an Islamist rebel, initially came to Syria from Iraq to fight Assad with the support of the Islamic State, but later broke with the group and pledged allegiance to al-Qaida. He broke with al-Qaida as well, in 2016. His militant group, the al-Nusra Front, rebranded twice, becoming Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, in 2017. HTS was designated a terrorist organization by the United States. 'President al-Sharaa praised America's fast action on lifting sanctions,' Trump's envoy reported after the talks on Saturday. 'This meeting was historic, putting the issue of sanctions – as President Trump has indicated – far behind us, and resulting in joint commitment of both our countries to drive forward, quickly, with investment, development, and worldwide branding of a new, welcoming Syria without sanctions.' Among the projects now possible is a Trump Tower Damascus, proposed as part of an effort to entice the US president into removing sanctions. Trump himself appears to have been impressed by a recent meeting with al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia; the US president told reporters that the former commander of al-Qaida's franchise in Syria was a 'young, attractive guy, tough guy, you know. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter.' Barrack, who was indicted by the justice department in 2021 and charged with 'unlawful efforts to advance the interests of the United Arab Emirates' during the first Trump administration, was acquitted of all charges after a federal trial in 2022.
The Guardian
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Trump envoy praises new Syrian president for ‘counter-ISIS measures'
Donald Trump's old friend Thomas Barrack, now serving as the US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, praised Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, after a meeting in Istanbul on Saturday. 'I stressed the cessation of sanctions against Syria will preserve the integrity of our primary objective – the enduring defeat of ISIS – and will give the people of Syria a chance for a better future,' Barrack said in a statement, referring to actions taken on Friday by the Trump administration to temporarily suspend sanctions imposed on the government of the former president, Bashar al-Assad, who was deposed by rebel forces led by Sharaa late last year. Syria had been under US sanctions since 1979, which intensified after 2011's deadly crackdown on peaceful protesters by Assad. 'I also commended President al-Sharaa on taking meaningful steps towards enacting President Trump's points on foreign terrorist fighters, counter-ISIS measures, relations with Israel, and camps and detention centers,' Barrack added. Those conditions put Sharaa in the position of cracking down on his former allies. Sharaa, an Islamist rebel, initially came to Syria from Iraq to fight Assad with the support of the Islamic State, but later broke with the group and pledged allegiance to al-Qaida. He broke with al-Qaida as well, in 2016. His militant group, the al-Nusra Front, rebranded twice, becoming Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, in 2017. HTS was designated a terrorist organization by the United States. 'President al-Sharaa praised America's fast action on lifting sanctions,' Trump's envoy reported after the talks on Saturday. 'This meeting was historic, putting the issue of sanctions – as President Trump has indicated – far behind us, and resulting in joint commitment of both our countries to drive forward, quickly, with investment, development, and worldwide branding of a new, welcoming Syria without sanctions.' Among the projects now possible is a Trump Tower Damascus, proposed as part of an effort to entice the US president into removing sanctions. Trump himself appears to have been impressed by a recent meeting with al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia; the US president told reporters that the former commander of al-Qaida's franchise in Syria was a 'young, attractive guy, tough guy, you know. Strong past. Very strong past. Fighter.' Barrack, who was indicted by the justice department in 2021 and charged with 'unlawful efforts to advance the interests of the United Arab Emirates' during the first Trump administration, was acquitted of all charges after a federal trial in 2022.
