General
Monday Briefing
The rebels who intend to govern Syria.
A rebel fighter last week at a facility once run by Syrian Military Intelligence Branch 215, which was notorious for torture and killings.Credit…Daniel Berehulak/The New York Times
How will the rebels rule Syria?
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Islamist rebel movement that just spearheaded the overthrow of the Assad dynasty in Syria, has roots in the Islamic State and Al Qaeda. But since around 2016, the group has modified and moderated its own jihadist orientation.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has run much of the opposition-held province of Idlib since 2017, accomplishing a certain level of stability and discipline. It maintained a robust internal security force to confront other military factions and domestic critics, prompting regular protests against harsh jail conditions and what were seen as authoritarian methods.
The primary question is whether these rebels, who are now trying to form a national government, can scale up what they achieved in Idlib, which is poor and agrarian with a relatively small population. Read more about what we know about their approach to governance.
The U.S. has been in direct contact with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday — the first official confirmation that Washington was communicating with the group, despite having labeled it a terrorist organization.
Strikes: Israel struck Syria 75 times in attacks that began Saturday night on military sites near the capital, Damascus, and the cities of Hama and Homs, a group monitoring the conflict said.
On the ground: “It is from God that we are back in our land.” Read our correspondent’s dispatch from Tel Rifaat in northwestern Syria, where people are returning home after years of displacement.
