Damascus, Syria– Governments worldwide are stepping up efforts to engage with Syria’s new interim rulers, just over a week after Islamist-led rebels ousted President Bashar al-Assad, ending decades of brutal rule and civil war.
The surprise ouster caught many governments by surprise and has left them scrambling for a new policy.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group that led the offensive, is rooted in Al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch, and is still designated a terrorist group by several Western governments.
Diplomats, including UN envoy Geir Pedersen who was in Syria on Sunday, have urged an inclusive new administration focused on nation-building and justice.
Pedersen met with HTS chief Ahmed al-Sharaa — previously known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani — and called for “justice and accountability for crimes”.
“We need to make sure that that goes through a credible justice system, and that we don’t see any revenge,” he said.
A Qatari delegation also landed in Syria on Sunday to meet transitional government officials and pledge “full commitment to supporting the Syrian people.”
Qatar’s embassy is set to resume operations Tuesday, 13 years after it closed in the early stages of an anti-government uprising that sparked years of civil war.
Unlike other Arab countries, Qatar never restored ties with Assad’s Syria.
Aid and diplomacy
It comes after Turkey, a key backer of some of the rebel groups that ousted Assad, reopened its embassy in Damascus on Saturday.
Both Britain and the United States also confirmed they were in touch with HTS despite officially considering the organisation a terrorist group.
“We can have diplomatic contact and so we do have diplomatic contact,” British Foreign Minister David Lammy said as he announced an aid package for Syrians.
A French diplomatic team is also due in Damascus on Tuesday to “retake possession of our real estate” and make “initial contact” with the new authorities, said acting Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.
They will also be “evaluating the urgent needs of the population”, he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meanwhile said his country was coordinating on providing aid including wheat, flour and oil to Syria.
UN envoy Pedersen called for “increased, immediate” aid during his Damascus visit.
Turkey was ready to provide military support to the new Islamist-led government, Defense Minister Yasar Guler said Sunday, Turkish media reported.
The new leadership should be given “a chance”, he added.
HTS has sought to moderate its rhetoric in recent years, but its seizure of power has sparked some concern over the protection of religious and ethnic minorities.
Syrian Christians attending their first Sunday church service since Assad’s fall said they were largely reassured so far.
The interim government insists they will protect the rights of all Syrians, and the rule of law.
Israel orders more troops
Both Israel and Turkey have carried out military strikes inside Syria since Assad’s fall.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted his country has “no interest in confronting Syria”, despite carrying out hundreds of strikes over the past week.
“Israel’s policy toward Syria will be determined by the evolving reality on the ground,” he said in a video statement.
Israel has also ordered troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights, a move denounced by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and which the UN said violated a 1974 armistice.
And Israel’s government on Sunday approved a plan to double the population in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights.