Following last week’s defeat of the Assad regime in Syria, Syrian rebels have been carrying out a peaceful takeover of the country’s offices and institutions. Rebel leader Ahmad Al Sharaa – known as Abu Mohammad Al-Jolani – tasked a representative to form a civil transitional government.
The Israeli occupation of the buffer zone in the south of Syria and its relentless bombing of the Syrian military capabilities along with the violations being carried out by the US, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militants backed by Washington and the PKK in the northwest of the country are, however, making trouble.
Al-Jolani declared the resumption of work at all state ministries and announced a pilot operation for the reopening of Damascus airport. He also announced the intention of major reforms including possible pay rise by 400 per cent for civil servants.
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He also declared a plan to integrate armed militias into the national army. Engaging in internal reforms and disengagement from external issues, including a conflict with Israel, are also listed among his plans.
Meanwhile, several countries announced that they were working on repairing their diplomatic ties with the new Syria. Others sent advice to the rebels, including those who suffered or observed the failure of revolutions in neighbouring countries such as Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco.
The Turkish flag was raised at its embassy in the Syrian capital Damascus on Saturday as the mission resumed operations following a hiatus of 12 years.
The embassy, which had suspended operations in 2012, officially reopened with Burhan Koroglu, Türkiye’s ambassador to… pic.twitter.com/63YfMfLcuX
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At this stage, no one can deny that the Syrians are facing major internal and external challenges. In addition to the Israeli occupation and the American colonialist movements via the SDF and the PKK, there are the hypocritical secularists, liberals, rights activists and others.
The least troublesome issue for the rebels, in my opinion, is the Israeli occupation, and the worst is American interference.
For the Syrians, Israel is an occupying regime, one that has expanded its land grab since the fall of the Syrian regime. I think Al-Jolani’s decision not to engage in a conflict with Israel is a smart one.
It is an undeniable fact that Al-Jolani was a jihadi rebel, but now he is a statesman who heads a country which needs reformation efforts to be able to rise up after 53 years of one of the worst authoritarian regimes in the world.
At the same time, thousands of freed prisoners and families who lost their loved ones during the Assad family reign need rehabilitation.
There is an urgent need to support the millions of people who had their homes destroyed and to deal with the crisis which is resulting from half of the nation that has been or is still internally or externally displaced.
It is not wise to ignore all of this and engage with conflicts and wars which need a lot of effort and resources. Treating people’s wounds and allowing them to recover from the chronic diseases is far more important than the difficult surgery needed to deal with the Israeli occupation.
For now, the new Syria can resolve the issue with the Israeli occupation through direct or indirect talks and delay any battles until the country is ready.
Israel is also not ready to engage in more conflicts, in light of its destruction of Gaza and southern Lebanon and the backlash it has faced as a result of its actions over the past 14 months.
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The issue of ‘Greater Israel’ and the arrogant remarks by Israeli officials do not reflect the reality on the ground in Israel, where acute divisions and polarisation are prevalent and are likely to lead to its self-destruction.
Meanwhile, the Free Syrian Army (FSA), which has been ruling wide swathes of Syrian land adjacent to Turkiye, will not be an obstacle as it is an ally to Ankara. A number of its leaders, including its founders, have already welcomed Al-Jolani’s announcement of the formation of one national army for the whole of the country.
Turkiye is also keeping an eye on the US-backed SDF and the Kurdish PKK group.
As happened in Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco, the secularists, liberals, feminists and alleged rights activists are the major challenge for Syrians. They are only tools for external interference. They have already started to criticise the current rulers, claiming they are not the right people to lead the country because they will not respect the minorities, the rights of women or have a modern civilised way of governance.
They argue that those in control of the new Syria are extremist religious Muslims and they are going to create a religious state which will implement Sharia Law. It was these same people, along with anti-Muslim and Islamist propagandists, who were the main reason for the counter revolutions in Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia.
Where were these people over the past 53 years? Some were silent and others worked to cover up the regime’s crimes, while others believed that liberation comes through statements and reports issued by their employers in Washington or London. They never sacrificed anything for the liberation of their country.
Now, we find all of them standing up and wanting to reap the rewards of the victory of the revolution. The problem is that they spread disinformation about the Islamists who liberated the country and accuse them of being fanatics and extremists in order to turn people away from them. They are the spokespersons of foreign powers who are seeking to interfere in the internal issues of the country.
These people are either ignorant or know exactly what they are doing, undermining the creation of an Islamist government for a Muslim majority country, which will never accept any form of colonialism or external custodianship based on the exploitation of its resources and wealth. They are a real challenge because they are the face of colonial powers and the pathway of external interference.
The rebels must pay attention to them and learn lessons from the failed revolutions in neighbouring countries, be proud of their Islamic identity and work for the establishment of a constitution based on power, justice, reforms, freedoms and prosperity inspired by the ultimate justice of the Sharia Law.
They should not belittle any challenge and pay attention to the rights of every single person, engage with development and not fall into the trap of external debt and fake alliances. This is the only way for a state to survive.
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The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.