The Syrian Civil War Pt.1: Wassim Nasr Meets Al-Sharaa

24 snips

Feb 12, 2025

Wassim Nasr, a seasoned France24 journalist, provides deep insights into the Syrian Civil War. He discusses the unexpected rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, detailing its evolution from an Al-Qaeda affiliate to a formidable political force. The conversation highlights his pivotal meetings with Ahmed Al-Sharaa, drawing connections between personal narratives and broader socio-political changes. Nasr also unveils the complexities of tribal dynamics and shifting loyalties, illustrating the resilience of Syrian communities in a landscape marked by conflict.

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ANECDOTE

Early Interest in Syria

Wassim Nasr became interested in Syria during the early days of the revolution, before the war began.
His interest stemmed from witnessing a dictatorship challenged by its people and a concern for the potential consequences of inaction by the international community.

INSIGHT

Pre-existing Logistical Networks

Pre-existing logistical networks in Syria, used by Al-Qaeda in Iraq, facilitated their re-entry into Syria during the conflict.
Assad's manipulation of these networks in negotiations with the U.S. further complicated the situation.

ANECDOTE

Al-Julani's Clever Disguise

Al-Julani, sent to Syria in 2011, cleverly disguised himself as Iraqi to secure an early release from U.S. custody after being imprisoned in Iraq.
This allowed him to rejoin the ranks of those who would become leaders of the Islamic State.

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Conflicted takes on… the Syrian Civil War.

In the wake of the fall of Assad, with the Syrian Civil War over, at least for the moment, Conflicted is bringing you a bit of a retrospective. In the coming episodes, we’ll be inviting Syrians and other people who experienced the conflict, from a multitude of different perspectives, onto the show to tell us about their experiences of the war. In doing so, we want to create a kind of narrative history as we make sense of this most complex of conflicts from as many angles as we can.

In our first episode, we have an old friend of the show Wassim Nasr, a journalist for France24, who Conflicted Community members will remember from when we spoke to him about his incredible reporting from the Sahel Region of Africa. But Wassim’s reporting on Syria is equally enlightening, with some of the greatest access you will see anywhere. He has been on the ground in Syria throughout the conflict, and was in fact one of the first Western journalists to meet with Ahmed Al-Sharaa, now the country’s interim president, after Assad’s fall.

In this episode, we’re setting up some crucial context for the Syrian Civil War through the surprising rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), providing a nuanced understanding of their evolution from an Al-Qaeda affiliate to a pragmatic political force that ultimately took control of the country. And then to top it all off, we’ll hear all about Wassim’s two meetings with Al-Sharaa…

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