The view of Sharia... and the cups of poison

Local, regional and international attention rarely turns to one man. This only happens at major turning points. It is not at all simple for a young man in his forties to emerge from the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus to turn the page on more than half a century of Assad family rule. The uprooting of the Syrian Baath by Syrian hands is an event that may have greater repercussions for Iraq and the region than the uprooting of the statue of Saddam Hussein’s regime by the American invasion.

The scene was either grand or terrifying. Ahmad al-Sharaa in the courtyard of the Umayyad Mosque and Bashar al-Assad inaugurated his retirement in Russian exile. The excitement was compounded by the fact that al-Sharaa was not an unknown man. The world had known him before by his nickname “Abu Muhammad al-Julani.” The man was wanted and many followed the news of his journey with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his separation from them at stations that had great resonance under the titles of “Al-Qaeda,” “ISIS,” “Al-Nusra,” and finally “Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham.”

Syrians, the people of the region and the world have the right to ask what is going on in the man’s mind and veins. The first question is: What does al-Sharaa want? Does changing his uniform reflect a change in the dictionary and its vocabulary? What kind of Syria does he want? Can he manage the jungle of rifles that carried him to Damascus and gave him the title of “strongman” in Syria, perhaps awaiting future titles? Can he prevent the rampage of his comrades who are looking for war here or immersion there? Has Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham changed during its years of dormancy in the Idlib stronghold? Is it ready to reconcile with the realities of the Syrian structure, regional balances and international conditions? There are those who believe that Syria can accompany Ahmed al-Sharaa in his new version, but it cannot live in the shadow of the version that was represented by “Abu Muhammad al-Julani.”

Questions. Questions. Questions. Are the conditions for a Syria built on citizenship and institutions currently available? A Syria that lives under a constitution that respects pluralism and the right to differ. A Syria built on law and justice without revenge or settling scores. What about Sunnis, Alawites, Druze and Christians, and what about Arabs and Kurds? What about human rights, women’s rights, personal freedoms and educational curricula? A unified Syria that is obsessed with fighting poverty and joining the train of development and progress. A Syria that lives within its borders without the illusion of an intrusive regional role and exporting a model that its neighbors do not want. What is Syria’s relationship with the Arab incubator, with Iran and Turkey, and what is its position on Israel? Sharia has sent reassuring messages, but they need clearer expressions and more explicit vocabulary.

Sharia emerged from the Umayyad square, and the features of the earthquake were complete. Syria without Assad. Without Iran. And without Hezbollah. The axis of resistance was forced to take the path of retirement, at least for the time being. The Tehran-Beirut road, which Qassem Soleimani spent blood, billions, and years to pave, was tightly cut off. The fall of Assad returned Hezbollah to the Lebanese map, and here is its leader admitting the loss of the supply route, which was the path to his regional role. We are facing another Syria and another Lebanon.

Sharaa’s appearance rang alarm bells in nearby capitals. Syria is linked to the arteries of the region and its future affects security, stability and balances. Baghdad feared that reversing the equations in Syria would whet the appetite of those who yearn to reversing the equations in Iraq. Amman feared that Syria was on the verge of thorny dates, so the Aqaba meeting expressed an Arab and international desire to embrace a “comprehensive political process” that would lead to a Syria that accommodates all its components. The decapitated Lebanese Republic returned to searching for a president and wondered whether Hezbollah had learned “the bitter lesson that we must learn from,” in the words of the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Hussein Salami.

Sharaa’s appearance has a clear regional flavour. Turkey has made no secret of its role in toppling Assad, who rejected repeated invitations to shake hands with Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It seems clear that the Turkish leader played a decisive role in convincing Russia and Iran to swallow the poisoned cup. Russia gave up the man it had militarily intervened to save. Iran gave up the Syrian crossing to Lebanon. Iran played the role of guide under Assad. Turkey may play the role of guide under Sharaa. But it remains to be seen what guarantees and bandages Erdogan has provided Russia and Iran in exchange for their abandonment of support for Assad.

After Assad's departure, Israel acted with blatant aggression. It destroyed the last capabilities of the Syrian army. It seemed to expect the new Syria to be a source of dangers, not stability, and it treated Shara's appearance as if it were merely an appearance by al-Julani. Will Turkey sponsor the construction and arming of the new Syrian army? Will Israel accept Turkey's presence on its borders after it fought a long war to keep Iran away from these borders? Will Iran accept the regional likelihood of the Turkish role or is it betting on the relapse of the new Syrian situation to infiltrate it?

The world did not shed a tear for the Republic of Captagon. The horrors of injustice, killing and torture in Sednaya prison left no room for regret. The scene of the corpse press on the screens defeated the imaginations of the best writers of cruelty novels. The new situation in Syria will benefit from these Syrian, Arab and international condemnations of the marathon of brutality led by the security henchmen and held for a long time. But the future is more important than the past and the coming months will reveal whether Syria has opened a window to the future.

The appearance of Shara distributed cups of poison to the regime and its allies, and the most important thing remains to keep Syria away from the cups of chaos, violence, terrorism, and civil war between the components.

*Quoted from Asharq Al-Awsat