Something of a miracle in Syria
By Raja Abdulrahim
During a recent reporting trip to Syria, I was visiting an aunt in Aleppo when a plane flew overhead. Sitting near the balcony door, my aunt listened to the roar for a second before commenting that only recently had she stopped flinching at the sound of an aircraft.
For more than a decade, that sound meant warplanes and helicopters dropping bombs and firing rockets, often on civilians. Today, it just means a flight is overhead — perhaps one carrying Syrians returning from exile, or investors scoping out the country or even tourists visiting for the first time.
It was a year ago today that the Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad was overthrown. A new government, formed by the rebels who ousted him, took over.
Since then, the initial jubilation and optimism have been tempered by reality. The government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa has faced plenty of criticism for its missteps, including outbreaks of sectarian violence involving some forces affiliated with the government and his tendency to restrict decision-making to a tight circle of advisers. I wrote about efforts to rebuild the Syrian military, which many say is favoring loyalists over those with expertise.
As the international community is trying to understand where Syria is headed, the anniversary of al-Assad’s fall feels like an opportunity to look at what’s gone right. Because it’s arguably something of a miracle that a Syrian state is functioning at all.
No more front lines, no more Assad photos
I’m often asked, “How is Syria these days?” It’s an impossible question to answer succinctly because the situation is so complex.
During my latest trip, many complained about how electricity prices seemed poised to skyrocket just as it was getting colder. Others criticized the government’s inability to ensure security amid post-conflict revenge killings and kidnappings. Some Syrians — especially those from the country’s religious and ethnic minorities — are fearful of the new Islamist leaders and the conservative direction the country may take.
These concerns are important. They’re also a reflection of the enormousness of the challenge of rebuilding and unifying a country as diverse as Syria, which has collectively gone through severe trauma.
Syria’s nearly 14-year civil war cut across the country’s many religious, sectarian and ethnic groups — Sunnis, Shiites, Alawites, Christians, Druse and Kurds — leaving it deeply divided and distrustful. When I say it’s a miracle that there’s a functioning state at all, this is part of why.
And yet here are some of the ways Syria feels like a new country.
There are no more front lines. Millions of displaced Syrians who either left the country or fled to other parts of Syria have the opportunity to return home. There is no more military conscription. Thousands of men who had fled or went into hiding to avoid the draft have since come back or finally feel safe leaving their homes.
Gone are the ubiquitous photos of al-Assad, along with those of some of his family members, that stared down on Syrians like a Big Brother warning them not to step out of line.
No longer are Syrians held hostage by the fear that “the walls have ears” — the threatening adage that for decades warned them that any talk of politics, or a stray word deemed to be anti-Assad, could lead to their being disappeared. During the last years of the war, the Assad government outlawed the use of foreign currencies, and even the mention of the word “dollar” could potentially get someone arrested.
Today, Syrians say they have a different experience of the state. They marvel that they can visit government buildings and be treated respectfully by civil servants.
On recent visits, I’ve noticed a particular song playing, sometimes, on repeat at neighborhood gatherings, weddings and graduation parties. It’s a revolutionary song: “Raise your head high, you are a free Syrian.”
Reclaiming the skies
For Syria to emerge successfully as a unified and functional country, it will take many years and continued global support.
Much of the international community has welcomed Syria’s new leader, and countries that had regarded it as a pariah state have reestablished ties.
But those ties and support are not unconditional, which is part of why it’s so important for people to understand the full picture in Syria today — the negatives, yes, but the positives, too.
Those airplanes my aunt used to flinch at? On several occasions — including the March anniversary of the start of the Syrian uprising — the new Syrian government has used the country’s military helicopters to drop flowers over crowds, reclaiming both the aircraft and the skies for beauty.
The Defense Ministry has said it plans to do the same again today to commemorate Dec. 8 — the first anniversary of al-Assad’s ouster.
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You’re done for today. See you tomorrow! — Katrin
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Katrin Bennhold is the host of The World, the flagship global newsletter of The New York Times.
The post The New Syria appeared first on New York Times.
