DAMASCUS: The main commander of the rebels who toppled Bashar al-Assad said on Wednesday that anyone involved in the torture or killing of detainees during the ousted president’s rule would be hunted down and pardons were out of the question.
“We will pursue them in Syria, and we ask countries to hand over those who fled so we can achieve justice,” Abu Mohammed al-Golani said in a statement published on the Syrian state TV’s Telegram channel. Syria ran one of the most oppressive police states in West Asia during five decades of Assad family rule.
The new interim prime minister said he aimed to bring back millions of Syrian refugees, create unity and provide basic services, but rebuilding would be daunting.
“In the coffers there are only Syrian pounds worth little or nothing. One US dollar buys 35,000 of our coins,” Mohammed al-Bashir told Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera. “We have no foreign currency and as for loans and bonds we are still collecting data. So yes, financially we are very bad.” US officials are warily engaging with the former rebels, although HTS remains designated an international terrorist organisation by Washington, the United Nations, EU and others.
A resident of the Assad family’s hometown of Qardaha said Sunni Islamist fighters had torched the mausoleum of Assad’s father Hafez over the past two days, instilling fear among villagers from Assad’s Alawite sect who had pledged cooperation with the new rulers.
For refugees, the prospect of returning home has brought a mixture of joy and grief over hardship in exile. Syrians lined up at the Turkish border on Wednesday to head home, speaking of their expectations for a better life following what was for many a decade of hardship in Turkey.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday that the toppling of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was the result of a plan by the United States and Israel.
One of Syria’s neighbours also had a role, he said. He did not name the country but appeared to be referring to Turkey, which has backed anti-Assad rebels.