From Aleppo to Damascus: Scenes of a post-Assad Syria
Less than a week after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime, FRANCE 24’s Wassim Nasr travelled to Syria to interview rebel leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, better known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Jolani. Crossing from Aleppo in the north to Damascus in the south, Nasr passed through towns and cities in the newly liberated country, documenting its people and landscapes along the way.
1. Entry into a post-Assad Syria
As soon as news of Bashar al-Assad's ouster broke – and with the main airport at Damascus still out of action – I began making plans for how to get into Syria.
I first travelled to Turkey, which borders Syria in the north, before crossing the Bab al-Salameh border post – one of the main border crossings leading into northwest Syria.
Many Syrians – women, men, children and families – had gathered at the Syria-Turkey border as they prepared to return home. Some had their arms full of luggage, while others were empty-handed; some were well-dressed and a few children were barefoot.
Once over the border, I found myself in territories controlled by the Syrian National Army (SNA) but long coveted by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist militant group that spearheaded the lightning offensive that toppled Assad.
It was as if Syrians, after over 50 years of the Assad family’s rule, could not yet shake the habit of idolising the country’s leader.
Read more on FRANCE 24 English
Read also:
Seven years of torture by Assad’s executioners: ‘I will never forgive them’
'Palestinians by blood but Syrians at heart': Residents of Yarmouk refugee camp dream of revival
