In December 2024, after more than 50 years of dynastic reign and 13 years of bloodily repressing its own people, Bashar al-Assad’s regime collapsed, freeing the Syrians from oppression, but leaving a country bled dry, emptied of a large part of its population (either exiled or killed in the massacres, bombing etc. that have studded this decade). It is HTS (Hayat Tahrir al-Sham) which has liberated Syria and that Islamist group’s plans for organizing the reconstruction of the country and reviving Syrian society in a context of great national and regional chaos are as yet unknown.
In his European chronicle, Jean-François Drevet examines the three main challenges which, as he sees it, Syria will have to confront: to equip itself with a stable political structure; to restore its territorial integrity, resolve the border problems with its neighbours (Turkey, Israel, Lebanon, in particular) and solve the complex equation posed by the Kurdish question; and to reposition itself on the international scene, so as to re-establish balanced relations with the major powers, some of which have fought a proxy war on its territory. The last two challenges are of concern, directly or indirectly, to Europeans—not least because Europeans have welcomed part of the Syrian diaspora and remain involved in the international management of the crises and conflicts bedevilling the Middle East.
The article is downloadable only in French. It is not available in English.
