Wed. Feb 19th, 2025

The world accepts the Syrian opposition and activists call for accountability and lessons learned policy


Social media sites are still reacting to international positions regarding the rapid and sudden collapse of the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the armed opposition’s control over the country.

After 13 years of attempts to suppress the revolution – in which Russia played a decisive role – the independence flag flew over the Damascus embassy in Moscow, which received Assad and his family as political refugees.

Raising this flag at the Syrian embassy represents the Kremlin’s official recognition of the transitional authority in Syria. Moscow has confirmed that it is in contact with Syrian opposition groups and urged all parties to renounce violence.

Russia said – in an official statement – that its military bases in Syria do not face any dangers at the present time, and that it is prepared at the same time to deal with any development.

Moscow also called on the Security Council to hold an emergency meeting regarding Syria on Monday to discuss developments in the Syrian arena after the departure of Bashar al-Assad.

In the United States, outgoing President Joe Biden said that the time has come for the Syrians to gain their freedom, stressing that the United States expects the new authority not to threaten the security of Syria’s neighbors, in a clear reference to Israel.

The Washington Post quoted officials in the Biden administration as saying that Washington may consider removing Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham – which led the operation to overthrow Assad – from the list of terrorist organizations to ensure the stability of Syria.

In Britain, Cabinet Affairs Minister Pat McFadden revealed that his country may consider lifting the ban on Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham based on future developments.

In this context, the European Commission said that it is not communicating with Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham at the present time, and that it needs to evaluate its actions in terms of protecting minorities before considering removing them from the sanctions list.

As for Iran – which is considered one of the most staunch supporters of the ousted president – it said that it will determine its relationship with the Syrian opposition based on its behavior, and on the policies it will adopt towards Tehran and the Shiite groups in Syria, and based on its position towards Israel as well and with what it described as “other terrorist groups.”

A call for accountability and benefiting from the past

The international reactions sparked great interaction on social media, where Ali expressed his belief that “the entire international community will engage in dialogue with Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, because it is the main actor today.”

Ali said, “We hope that the Commission will benefit from the lessons of the past so as not to repeat previous scenarios and for Syria to remain united.”

As for Suleiman Abu Aql, he believes that “after Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham took control of all of Syria, it did not take revenge on the minorities despite most of them supporting the regime and despite all their crimes against the Syrian people.” He added, “But we must separate tolerance from the necessity of holding accountable those involved in war crimes by the regime.”

As Abu Muawiyah Al-Somali wrote: “The brothers in Syria must cut ties with the criminal Russia, which committed massacres, supported the criminal Assad regime, and smuggled it to Moscow.”

As for May, she said that she hopes that “the new administration in Free Syria will deal with America and not turn to another party, such as China and others.”


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