Pleasure, hope and homicide in free Syria – podcast | Syria

After greater than a decade of warfare, and half a century of repressive rule beneath Bashar al-Assad and his father, Syrians have a brand new ruler and a brand new future. Michael Safi spent per week travelling across the nation, talking to folks about their surging hopes and pleasure – but additionally their fears of how fragile this peace might show to be.

Driving from Lebanon to Damascus with a household, he heard concerning the painful toll the years of warfare and repression had taken on them: a father killed, a brother disappeared, a sister jailed. However additionally they advised him how optimistic they nonetheless have been for this second of historical past.

In Damascus, he found regular life had begun creeping again – however that international jihadists have been nonetheless manning checkpoints. And he spoke to an help employee who mentioned his British citizenship had been revoked and who might quickly be a brand new Syrian nationwide.

Outdoors the town, nonetheless, Michael discovered that the Alawites, Assad’s spiritual sect, have been already dealing with bloody reprisals. However though many fear about what the brand new authorities of former jihadists would possibly do, as one civil society activist advised him: “Earlier than the regime fell, we didn’t have house to maneuver. Every little thing was actually darkish. Now we’ve got a lot to do in our nation and I’m seeing an area to maneuver.”