Syria's Abu Mohammed al-Golani vows to punish those responsible for torture under Assad
Topic:Unrest, Conflict and War
21m ago21 minutes agoWed 11 Dec 2024 at 11:03pm
A close up of Abu Mohammed al-Golani speaking into a microphone
Abu Mohammed al-Golani speaks to a crowd at Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. (AP: Omar Albam)
In short:
Syrian rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani said that he would hunt down those involved in the torture or killing of detainees during Assad's ruling.
In a statement, Al-Golani said he will dissolve the security forces of the previous regime, and close the "notorious" prisons.
What's next?
Foreign officials are warily engaging with the former rebels, although the HTS group remains designated a terrorist organisation by Washington, the United Nations, EU and others.
The main commander of the fighters who toppled Bashar al-Assad has said he would hunt down anyone involved in the torture or killing of detainees during the ousted Syrian president's rule, dissolve the security forces of the former regime and close its prisons.
"We will pursue them in Syria, and we ask countries to hand over those who fled so we can achieve justice," Syrian rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani said in a statement published on the Syrian state TV's Telegram channel.
In a statement to Reuters, al-Golani said he will "dissolve the security forces of the previous regime and close the notorious prisons."
Syria ran one of the most oppressive police states in the Middle East during five decades of Assad family rule.
Al-Golani, whose former al Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is now the country's most powerful force, must balance demands for justice from victims with the need to prevent violent reprisals and secure international aid.
Syrians have flocked to the infamous prisons where the Assad regime is estimated to have held tens of thousands of detainees, desperately looking for their loved ones.
Some have been released alive, others were identified among the dead and thousands more have not yet been found.
The world is carefully watching to see if Syria's new rulers can stabilise the country and avoid unleashing violent revenge, after a 13-year civil war fought along sectarian and ethnic lines destroyed the country.
A bird's eye view of a building surrounded by people
The prison, notorious for the use of torture and excessive force, is believed to have multiple underground levels. (Anadolu via Getty Images: Izettin Kasim)
Since Assad's fall, 27-year-old Hayat al-Turki has been searching the abandoned cells of Syria's most notorious prison, the vast Sednaya complex, for any sign of her missing relatives, including her brother who vanished 14 years ago.
"I was hopeful and optimistic to find someone from my missing prisoners — a brother, an uncle or a cousin — but I did not… I searched the whole prison," she said.
Mohammad al-Bashir, the man installed by al-Golani's fighters to lead an interim administration, said he aimed to bring back millions of refugees, create unity and provide basic services.
But rebuilding would be daunting with little funding on hand.
"In the coffers there are only Syrian pounds worth little or nothing. One US dollar buys 35,000 of our coins," Bashir told Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera.
"We have no foreign currency and as for loans and bonds we are still collecting data. So yes, financially we are very bad," said Bashir, who previously ran a small rebel-led administration in a pocket of north-western Syria.
Rebuilding Syria is a colossal task following a civil war that killed hundreds of thousands of people, reduced cities to ruins, depopulated the countryside and left the economy gutted by international sanctions.
Millions of refugees still live in camps after one of the biggest displacements of modern times.
Engaging warily
Foreign officials are warily engaging with the former rebels, although HTS remains designated a terrorist organisation by Washington, the United Nations, EU and others.
The new government must "uphold clear commitments to fully respect the rights of minorities, facilitate the flow of humanitarian assistance to all in need, prevent Syria from being used as a base for terrorism or posing a threat to its neighbours," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
"It's our duty to do everything to support different Syrian leaders in order to make sure that they come together, they are able to guarantee a smooth transition," UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said
In addition to terrorism bans in place against the former rebels, Syria also remains under US, European and other financial sanctions imposed against Damascus under Assad.
Two senior US congressmen, a Republican and a Democrat, wrote a letter calling for Washington to suspend some sanctions. The most punishing war-time US sanctions are up for renewal this month, and the former rebels have told Reuters they are in touch with Washington about potentially easing them.
Hafez al-Assad mausoleum torched
A resident of Assad's family hometown of Qardaha said Sunni Islamist fighters had torched the mausoleum of Assad's father Hafez over the past two days, instilling fear among villagers from Assad's Alawite sect who had pledged cooperation with the new rulers.
For refugees, the prospect of returning home has brought a mixture of joy and grief over hardship in exile.
Syrians lined up at the Turkish border on Wednesday to head home, speaking of their expectations for a better life following what was for many a decade of hardship in Turkey.
"We have no one here. We are going back to Latakia, where we have family," said Mustafa as he prepared to enter Syria with his wife and three sons at the Cilvegozu border gate in southern Turkey.
Dozens more Syrians were waiting to cross.
US Deputy National Security adviser Jon Finer told Reuters that Washington was still working out how it will engage with the former rebels.
Washington remains cautious.
"We have seen over the years any number of militant groups who have seized power, who have promised that they would respect minorities, who have promised that they would respect religious freedom, promised that they would govern in an inclusive way, and then see them fail to meet those promises," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.
Posted21m ago21 minutes agoWed 11 Dec 2024 at 11:03pm
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