In its second week after Assad, Syria continues to journey a wave of euphoria and hope, bolstered by nice surprises from its new de facto chief Ahmad al-Sharaa, previously al-Jolani.
Over the weekend he told journalists that within the Middle East the Islamist Iran regime is the issue, and that he chooses diplomacy to settle disputes with Israel. And whereas the hardships of presidency will definitely complicate, and will even derail, Sharaa’s journey towards his acknowledged objectives, his begin has been nothing wanting wonderful.
To perceive Sharaa’s pondering, one can parse his completely different statements, from when he beat competing armed factions to emerge on high in Idlib, then from his time because the northern province’s ruler and, lastly, from his media availabilities because the rebels, largely Islamists, swept the a part of Syria that had been beneath the management of the Assad dynasty since 1972.
While governing Idlib, Sharaa’s cupboard tried, in January, to cross and implement a social engineering legislation, with 128 articles, that was alleged to impose a strict code on public house and habits. In addition to banning the sale and consumption of alcohol, the legislation stipulated full gender segregation in public locations, outlined an Islamic costume code for ladies in colleges, and banned such mundane social habits as smoking (together with the favored hookahs in coffeeshops) and fortunetelling.
The legislation precipitated a stir, and which may have prompted its authors to shelve it. Sharaa tried to defend it by promoting it as a legislation that “favored preaching Islam over imposing it,” however he didn’t appear to insist on the legislation.
While defending it, Sharaa confirmed one of many vital concepts that set him aside from Islamist rulers. “If we scare folks into residing by Islam, they are going to faux to be Muslims after we present up, and cease believing after we depart,” he said.
Sharaa appeared conscious of the uselessness of spiritual coercion, a conclusion that Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman had arrived at, and began implementing, in 2015, thus socially liberalizing Saudi Arabia at a breakneck pace.
During his rule of Idlib, Sharaa took satisfaction for his staff’s capability to run a authorities that proved to achieve success in accumulating taxes, balancing its books, reconstructing war-damaged infrastructure and sustaining ample providers – from trash assortment and provide of water and electrical energy to administration of public colleges and faculties. It is that this success that Sharaa has been promising the remainder of Syria, ever since he emerged as the brand new de facto chief since Assad fled to Moscow and his regime collapsed.
Because Sharaa is a person with a plan, and since he’s somebody who believes in his capability to remodel Syria right into a profitable state, he appears to have given up on Islamist populism that stands on the promise of infinite Jihad, liberation and warring towards non-Muslims, particularly Israel.
In his earliest media hits, Sharaa advised CNN that he had joined Al-Qaeda as a result of on the time he was nonetheless younger and immature, and that his views have advanced and adjusted since. He additionally mentioned that he believed in democracy and pluralism.
In that interview, like within the first look of Sharaa’s Idlib Prime Minister Muhammad Bashir because the chief of a transitional Syrian cupboard, each males erected behind them two flags – the Syrian revolution and the Jihadist flag of their Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) militia. The HTS flag precipitated an uproar on social media. The subsequent day, Syria’s new rulers nixed their faction’s flag and caught to the Syria one solely. Sharaa and his lieutenants had a plan, however in addition they listened.
Sharaa’s most encouraging statements, to this point, have come throughout his assembly, over the weekend, with Arab journalists, during which he mentioned that Syria beneath him had no drawback with the Iranian folks, however solely with the “harmful venture” of the Iran regime. He added that Syria wouldn’t go for struggle with Israel, that Israel’s strikes on Syria are now not justified (because the Iranian militias are gone) and that he would as an alternative search diplomatic options for any issues with the Jewish state.
And by opposing the Iranian “venture,” Sharaa additionally appeared adamant on rejecting the Iranian mannequin of encouraging the formation of armed non-state militias that permit a “religious chief” to manage the normally weaker authorities, thus creating failed states in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen.
Sharaa mentioned he deliberate to disband all militias and have the Syria authorities be the one sovereign that monopolizes using violence and stands chargeable for deploying it when want be.
He confirmed maturity in coping with Moscow, saying Syria’s new rulers may have struck Russian bases in Syria however most popular to show the web page, as an alternative. London is now in contact with Sharaa and so is Washington.
The way forward for Syria continues to be fraught with hazard. Governing all of Syria may show a lot more durable than dealing with simply one among its provinces and may trigger the favored temper to bitter on Sharaa and the brand new rulers – which could in flip immediate them to interact in Islamist populism by re-igniting nationwide fervor and interesting in harmful wars.
Until they achieve this, we have now to take Sharaa and his guys for his or her phrase and stay cautiously optimistic, serving to them construct a brand new Syria and giving them recommendation at any time when we expect they’re heading in a unsuitable course.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain is a analysis fellow on the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD). Follow him on X @hahussain
