In this episode of Hold Your Fire!, Richard is joined by Crisis Group experts Dareen Khalifa and Nanar Hawach to discuss what’s ahead for Syria after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. They unpack the offensive led by Hei’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other rebels, the rapid disintegration of regime forces and Syrians’ hopes after more than a decade of war. They look at the challenges Syria’s new authorities are facing under HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, including protecting public order, integrating the country’s fragmented rebel factions, army remnants and militias into a unified command, and steering a political transition. They look at security in central and western Syria, how minorities view Syria’s new rulers, and north-eastern Syria, where Turkish-backed groups have been battling the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). They discuss the U.S.’s role in Syria, the risk of a resurgent Islamic State and al-Sharaa’s efforts to get sanctions lifted and restore Syria’s relations with regional and Western capitals.
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For more on the topics discussed in this episode, check out our latest commentary “Key Decisions Loom as Syria Enters a New Era” and our Syria country page.
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