Syrians say the West betrayed them before - this time they hope it will be different
Syrians appear prepared to give their new government a chance despite nervousness about an extremist leader - they hope Western countries will do the same.
Sunday 15 December 2024 12:24, UK
In the palaces, prisons, and mosques of Damascus, the emotion that stood out more than any was hope in this extraordinary, bewildering week.
The hope for a better country and that the world will help them build it.
They have hoped before but in vain. In 2011, Britain, France and Germany joined then US President Barack Obama ordering Assad to "stand aside". It was up to the people of Syria to determine their own future, they said.
Syrians believe they have now done that. The lightning military advance that toppled the dictator may have been led by the Islamist group HTS, but every Syrian we spoke to believed it had happened in their name. It was the climax of years of sacrifice, martyrdom and struggle by an entire nation.
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The West betrayed the Syrian people once, we were told. It must not do so again.
In the Damascus suburb of Ghouta, we stood in a cemetery with young activist Qassam al Shami. He described an "apocalypse" 11 years ago when he helped bury hundreds of victims of a chemical weapons attack carried out by their own government. They were buried in five long trenches, three bodies deep - sometimes entire families at a time.
Obama had given the Syrians fresh hope back then, declaring the use of chemical weapons by Assad a "red line".
But the British parliament rejected military action to punish the Ghouta gassing, allowing the president to do the same.
The horrors there and in 300 other chemical attacks went unpunished. Syrians' hopes had proven unfounded.
But they are hoping again. More than that, many are firm in their belief Syria will get the help it needs now it has rid itself of Assad, as the West had instructed more than a decade ago.
Ruba Al Qabbani, 20, stood in Ummayad Square with thousands of others and told us: "The whole world will stand with us now."
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It had been an extraordinary day. The ancient Ummayad Mosque had erupted in a deafening roar of joy after Friday prayers.
Outside, tears welled in the eyes of grizzle-bearded men as they told us they were breathing clean air again. Abdul Rahman, a young gamer whose brother disappeared 12 years ago and has never come home, told us "freedom feels great, what a time to be alive".
The outside world has a chance to fulfill those hopes now and make up for the betrayals of the past.
The response has been cautious and qualified so far. Top diplomats from the US, Turkey, European and Arab countries met in Jordan this weekend. Their statement welcomed the fall of Assad but was laced with caveats.
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Their communique understandably called for an inclusive government in Syria, respecting the rights of minorities and warned against Syria becoming a base for terrorist groups.
The caution reflects suspicion about HTS and its leader, Ahmed al Sharaa. He is still regarded as a terrorist by America, his group originally an offshoot of al Qaeda.
But the West has found accommodations with leaders that were branded terrorists before. Israeli prime ministers Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir were both considered terrorists along with the organisations they led, before the establishment of the Jewish state.
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Russia supported Assad, saying the West had no plan for the country without him, and warned if the regime fell, Syria would collapse into chaos as Libya had after Gadaffi. The West has an obligation surely to prove that wrong.
Syria is a strategically vital country, located in the heart of the region, bordered by five countries. Turkey, Qatar and Germany have all sent envoys seeking influence early on. Others are waiting their time.
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Syrians we spoke to were prepared to give their new leadership a chance. There is undoubtedly nervousness about the extremist leader and his followers but many are willing to give the transition government time. They hope the West will do the same.