Syria, Six Months After a Dictator Departed

0:00Today on State of the World, we go to Syria six months after a dictator departed. You're listening to State of the World from NPR. We bring you the day's most vital international stories up close where they're happening. It's Thursday, July 10th. I'm Greg Dixon. A little over six months ago, the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad was toppled by opposition fighters after decades in power and years of civil war. NPR's Jaina Raaf covered Syria in the immediate aftermath of Assad's ouster in December. On today's episode, Jane takes us back to Damascus to see what has changed as Syria transitions to a new era.

0:47We're in a public square with a giant TV screen. Nearby on top of a hill is the presidential palace, now home to Ahmad Shara, a former al-Qaeda militant turned statesman. The occasion is the unveiling of a new logo, a stylized eagle featured on new Syrian passports. There's a lot of fanfare, bursts of fireworks, riders on horseback waving flags, dancers in white suits. And the thing about all of this is people watching here, families, young men, young women, older people, they're absolutely wrapped. And I don't think it's just the fireworks or the dancers or the horses. They look as if they're witnessing something momentous.

1:39There's a rising sandstorm, but the audience is undeterred. A young woman in stylishly modest dress puts her fingers in her mouth and produces an exuberant whistle. Her name is Ahlam Dekak. She's 21 and an information engineering student. She loves Ahmed Ashara, she says, because he's the leader who liberated them. All of Syria is with Ahmed Ashara, says another woman, Lama Madwar. She says her son-in-law was among the tens of thousands of Syrians arrested under the previous regime and never seen again. The new government has reason to celebrate. It has opened the door to renewed ties with countries, including the U.S., where Shara has become a favorite of President Trump.

2:34One of the Syrian president's advisors, Moussa Al-Amar, is at the ceremony, and he's ecstatic. This is the new day for Syria. Why is it a new day? Everything is new. Everything is changed. When Shara speaks, he promises jobs, security and unity. Syria does not accept division from north to south, east to west. We are united, he says. Not everyone feels that way. For millions of Syrians, this is a new beginning. Long dreamed of during the years of killings and arrests and repression. For others, seen to have benefited under the Assad regime. There are new fears. Ashaz al-Qatan is among a group of young women who have come hoping to deliver a petition to the president.

3:26They were just months away from graduating as judges, when the government dissolved their entire judicial institute class as a remnant of the old regime. You destroyed us without any consideration, says Qatan. Don't tell me to work hard and study hard. We didn't benefit from any of that. For some of the almost 6 million Syrians who fled the country during the civil war, there are new possibilities. This week, the Syrian American Medical Society, SAMS, brought together hundreds of physicians who left Syria years ago for the U.S. The need for services inside Syria is immense. The infrastructure of the hospitals, lack of equipment is severe.

4:11That's the new head of SAMS, Arafrafai, a Syrian American ophthalmologist. In spite of the incredibly low wages Currently about$60 a month Young Syrian doctors here say They're now more inclined to stay Atama Bream's 25 And an obstetrics and gynecology resident Before six months, no I planned to go UK or USA And now I decided to stay in Syria And complete my residency Some Syrians though are thinking of leaving Many are afraid after the killings this year of hundreds of members of the Alawite minority and a suicide bombing at a Damascus church. Others, like Rula Suleiman, wonder whether they have a place in this new Syria.

4:59She owns the Zawiyah Art Gallery and says she envisioned a refuge where everyone could discuss ideas and create what they wanted. But then government officials showed up, criticizing the art and asking why there was nudity. That's why I'm thinking about maybe leaving. Maybe I will stay. I don't know. Because there's nothing clear here. For most Syrians, though, like people here in the Sheikh Mahyadin market, the newfound freedom and the prospect of building a normal life makes up for almost everything. Things are getting better, says Sami Mahra, an unemployed plumber who sells vegetables here.

5:42But it will take time. Across town at a major intersection that was chaos a few months ago, there are newly hired traffic police. We went back to see a Boy Scout leader, Amjad Mahaddassan. We met him when he was directing traffic as a volunteer in January. He told us then that he was so happy to be free, he was walking on air. He's gone back to work to his quiet machine shop. I ask how he feels now. Great. I'm feeling good. The difference, he says, is peace of mind. Feeling comfortable in your own country. Jay Naraf, NPR News, Damascus.

6:35That's the State of the World from NPR. Thanks for listening.