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Irish Times
28-06-2025
- Politics
- Irish Times
‘Everybody can feel the pain': Middle Eastern views on the present and future
Syrian Amr Alhamad (42), lawyer and researcher, based in Damascus: 'My hopes for Syria have remained the same since the very first day of the revolution in March 2011. I believe everything changed with the liberation of Syria and the fall of [Bashar al-] Assad 's control. Despite the many internal challenges – sectarian tensions, economic hardship, lack of transparency and competence within the interim government, and ongoing regional interference – my hopes remain strong. 'Honestly, we don't have the luxury to stop fighting for a free Syria. I've lost many friends in this struggle, and I remain fully committed. I've adapted my efforts to meet the evolving needs on the ground. I won't hesitate to give it my all. 'Since the liberation in December 2024, I returned and launched a consultancy company, Nexus Consulting , to support media and NGOs, and to provide reliable data on the needs and perspectives of Syrians. Despite all the difficulties, I believe in a better future for Syria – and I'm not alone. According to a recent survey we conducted with more than 10,000 Syrians, the majority still believe in a better Syria, despite the continuing lack of services and economic crisis. READ MORE 'I also hope this spirit of resilience and hope spreads to Lebanon, Gaza, Iraq, and Iran. I truly hope they can join us in this journey toward freedom and dignity.' (In conversation with Sally Hayden.) Palestinian Rawan Yousef , a researcher and academic in Jerusalem (photo and age withheld for safety reasons): 'I think that with the situation now, one of the most humane and visible solutions [is a] one-state solution for the entire people of Palestine and Israel . So one state on the mandatory or historical lines of Palestine, where everyone has equal rights and where obviously no group of people is supposedly superior to the other, including dismantling the apartheid system of Israel. 'The issue with the Middle East is that there's hostile states, such as Israel, that are still in a colonial settler mindset, and they want to expand, and they want to submit other countries to their will. So my hopes for the region is that people can work towards just peace, and also there would be a sort of balance between different countries. 'I think it is important to think about justice and about people being held accountable for what they've done. An example of this is [Israeli prime minister Binyamin] , and he's a war criminal, so people like him must be brought to justice, and there should be accountability for what he and the Israeli army have done. 'I think people tend to see Palestine/Israel as a complex issue, but in reality it's not that complex. It is an active settler colonial endeavour on the Palestinian lands. And it is as simple as that. One group of people are settlers that have all the international backing, weaponry, everything, and the other population is native, and it's being genocided, it's being ethnically cleansed for the last seven decades. And ethnic cleansing goes into different speeds. So in the West Bank , there's also ethnic cleansing, there's also displacement of people. And to achieve peace, there need to be changes in the Israeli mindset and that needs to stop it being a settler colonial state.' (SH) Iranian Shima Vezvaei (37), Tehran-based journalist: Shima Vezvaei 'Everybody wants to know what Iranians want, and what do they think and what do they feel? And I have to say, it's very difficult to argue that and to talk about that as a homogenous thing ... People belong to different associations. They have been exposed to different media, different narratives, different groups. So it's very natural that we have different moods and we have different opinions. 'What I can say is that no matter what ... everybody, I think, can feel the pain, can feel the fear of a sound of the explosion of a missile, and everybody wants an end to that. '[As for the future], it's so out of our hands, and it's difficult to predict what's going to happen, and that's the part that sucks, because it depends on a lot of political groups and politicians that don't know anything about how the world should work. And they're breaking any law and any regulations, any system that was supposed to keep the world safe and to stop wars from happening and to de-escalate. I think political change must be connected to real material lives of our people. Not just powerful men who are running the world — Shima Vezvaei 'So I feel like there is nothing to hold on to. There is no law to hold on to, nobody to hope that acts, especially in the US, in Europe. And progressive groups in the Middle East are getting oppressed one after another, and their voices are not being heard. 'I think we have realised, more than before, the liberation of our people can't happen in a vacuum. That our fate is connected to each other. So I'm hoping that this 'ceasefire', or whatever that is (it's crazy even this news is breaking in Truth Social and X, instead of real meaningful negotiations), lasts long. But also an end to the genocide in Gaza, self-determination for people of Syria and Lebanon and Iran. 'I hope the power gets in the hands of people. And we can think about what justice and democracy looks for us, and how to achieve it. How to recognise the diversity of our people and celebrate it. And how to stop this accumulation of power and despotism in our own local governments. 'There is so much at stake now. Especially the achievements of our social movements, our women's movements ... laws, regulations, social and political freedom and equality ... 'I think political change must be connected to real material lives of our people. Not just powerful men who are running the world.' (SH) Israeli Sid Knopp (62) lives in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv and works in military computing: Sid Knopp 'A ceasefire with a fanatical terrorist regime is always going to be tenuous. The only way I see real progress is if the ayatollah is removed and a 'moderate' leadership comes in. 'My hope for the future is to live in peace without the constant threat of destruction. One would hope that the Islamic extremists in the neighbourhood will finally realise that we are not going anywhere. However, the 'cold peace' we've had with Egypt for decades is probably the best we can hope for with Lebanon and Syria. Most of my family and friends do not agree with my political views. They tend to be more optimistic and way less realistic. 'Gaza is disastrous for everyone involved. Another fanatical regime which pretends that their goal is to 'get their country back'. Hamas abuses their civilians, steals billions and is way more interested in terror than actually making progress. We see that following the October 7th massacres, almost two years ago, Hamas and their partners have been well battered, yet Hamas holds on to hostages because they dream of getting back to their previous role of total control and rebuilding their terror network. Sadly, I don't think it will end well for the few living hostages and when the time comes, Hamas will have to be obliterated.' (In conversation with Mark Weiss)
The National
08-06-2025
- Politics
- The National
Six months after fall of Assad, Syrians are cautiously optimistic about future under Al Shara
Six months after the downfall of Bashar Al Assad, Syria's new leader Ahmad Al Shara has established himself on the global stage and is pushing ahead with efforts to rebuild a fractured nation. After 13 years of civil war, Mr Al Shara led a rebel assault against the Assad regime and within 12 days ousted the president on December 8, without much of a fight. The leader of Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, a former Al Qaeda affiliate, Mr Al Shara now serves as Syria's President and is at the head of a transitional government. A cabinet was formed in March and includes ministers from Syria's diverse groups, with the aim of fostering national reconciliation. Members of the new government have participated in major international conferences and Mr Al Shara has been in the global spotlight for the past six months. Last week, he concluded his ninth international trip – and fourth to the Gulf – with a state visit to Kuwait. Much of the change in the country has been seen as positive, prompting a first wave of Syrians to return from neighbouring countries. 'When the regime finally fell, I took the first flight to Beirut, and from there I returned to Syria,' said Amr Alhamad, a Syrian lawyer who has launched a media consultancy project in his homeland. 'Yes, we won. It was magnificent. Entering Damascus felt like I could finally breathe again." Domestic challenges While many celebrated the removal of the authoritarian Assad regime, Syrians remain cautiously optimistic about the future given Mr Al Shara's 'strong past', as US President Donald Trump described it, recent outbreaks of sectarian violence and Israeli interference. Mr Al Assad is an Alawite and, since his downfall, the minority community has come under repeated attack. Many of its members regard the ascendancy of HTS as a threat to the existence of the community, which held power in Syria from 1963 until the Assad regime was toppled. Mr Al Shara has appointed a committee to investigate the bloodshed in the Alawites' coastal heartland, but he has blamed members of the former regime for the violence. One Alawite in the Kurdish region of Iraq, who requested anonymity over fear of reprisals, said he was waiting for the situation to improve and did not yet feel it was safe to return to Syria. 'We don't trust them and we are waiting for things to be better,' he said of the new government. He initially left Syria to avoid forced military conscription under the Assad regime and, while he was not politically active, he was still worried about becoming a target as an Alawite. Tensions also surged after a manipulated recording falsely claimed a Druze cleric had insulted Islam. The fake recording triggered sectarian violence, with militants attacking Druze towns near Damascus. Israel then launched air strikes near the Syrian presidential palace in the capital, which it said was a warning to the authorities not to harm the Druze minority. The strikes were another reminder of the challenges ahead for Syria, with regard to minorities, as well as Israeli interference. Over the past six months, Israel has pushed further into southern Syria and has waged a campaign of aerial bombardment. While the new Syrian authorities have enjoyed warmer ties with the West, Israel remains suspicious. Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani said Israeli strikes on Syria this week, launched after rockets were fired towards Israel, were aimed at destabilising the country. The Israeli attack took place after Mr Al Shara said last month that his government was holding indirect talks with Israel to bring an end to its strikes on Syria. Conflict is also continuing in Kurdish-majority areas of north-eastern Syria, where Turkish forces and proxies allied to Ankara clash with the Syrian Democratic Forces. Although a deal was signed by Mr Al Shara and SDF chief Mazloum Abdi on March 10 to integrate the SDF into Syria's state institutions, there is still work to do to reconcile with the Kurds. Ilham Ahmed, co-chairman of foreign affairs for the SDF's political wing, the Syrian Democratic Council, told The National in April that there were 'red lines' when it came to the country's constitution and Kurdish representation. 'Decentralisation is a key demand,' she said at the time, although Mr Al Shara has rejected the prospect of federalism. Uniting the myriad armed factions in Syria is crucial for Mr Al Shara's consolidation of power and for stability in the country. Syria's transitional authorities have so far recruited half of a planned 200,000-man army, a military official told The National. The move to integrate thousands of foreign fighters into the military is a step in the right direction but many risks persist, said Mona Yacoubian, senior adviser and director of the Middle East Programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. "He faces extremist threats from within as well as from ISIS, which recently claimed an attack in Suweida and continues to pose a real threat elsewhere," she said. Dareen Khalifa, a Syria expert at the International Crisis Group, said that the primary focus for Mr Al Shara was to get the security and economic front into a national centralised government. Authorities know that "in order to focus on the economic recovery process, they need to build enough political momentum and goodwill regionally and internationally," said Ms Khalifa. In the coming months, Mr Al Shara will 'continue to prioritise security, working to bring more rebels and armed groups under the umbrella of the central military and government,' she added. Sanctions relief after historic Trump talks In a landmark diplomatic engagement in the post-Assad era, Mr Al Shara met Mr Trump in Riyadh, marking the first direct contact between the US and Syria's new leadership since Mr Al Assad was toppled. The meeting, facilitated by Saudi officials, underscored a significant shift in Washington's policy towards Syria, with Mr Trump having announced a move to ease long-standing sanctions. The Treasury Department later issued a general licence that authorises transactions involving Mr Al Shara's government, as well as the central bank and state-owned enterprises. The sanctions relief is contingent on Syria's commitment to several conditions – telling all foreign militants to leave, deporting what Mr Trump called Palestinian terrorists and helping the US prevent the resurgence of ISIS, the White House said. Similarly, the EU has moved to lift sanctions on Syria, with the exception of those based on security matters. "The US decision to suspend sanctions - although temporary - provided a boost to Al Shara's efforts, paving the way for the Europeans to follow suit. Syria is now beginning to see some resources flow in," said Ms Yacoubian. The prospect of a sanctions-free Syria is expected to open the door for Gulf sovereign wealth funds and businesses to explore new opportunities. After Mr Trump's announcement, the UAE's DP World signed an $800 million agreement to develop and operate the port of Tartus. Saudi Arabia and Qatar have jointly pledged public salary support for Damascus. "Ahmad Al Shara's administration has focused on securing regional and international legitimacy as a means to gain sanctions relief, viewing diplomatic normalisation as essential to reviving Syria's devastated economy," said Sanam Vakhil, director of the Middle East Programme at the London-based Chatham House. "By re-engaging with Arab states and appealing to global powers, the regime seeks to attract investment, aid and reconstruction support to build greater internal support and stability." Despite these developments, the international community remains cautious. Olof Skoog , deputy secretary general for political affairs at the European External Action Service, told The National that the bloc believes Syria's leaders are committed to reform, but sanctions "can be reimposed – this is not a one-way street". 'This doesn't mean that we now leave everything to go its own way. On the contrary, it gives us a platform for dialogue with the Syrian leadership, and a basis for holding them accountable,' he noted. But for some Syrians, the effect of these changes has not yet been felt. 'Economically, nothing has changed. People are still tired, salaries are low, there's no money in the country, and there's no electricity,' said a doctor in Damascus. Mr Alhamad hopes that in six months, "we'll begin to see change." "Not just economic reform," he said, "but also progress towards the rule of law."
