Ahmad al-Shara seeks legitimacy inside and outside war-torn Syria

The fall of the Assad regime after more than 50 years and the rise of the militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) has brought Syria to a critical turning point.

Decades of Ba’athist rule entrenched deep ideological and emotional divides within Syrian society. Aside from the massive job of rebuilding the war-torn country’s infrastructure, the militarized nationalism and sectarianism of Assad’s regime have left the country with lasting social and political scars. These must be addressed as a matter of urgency if his successors truly wish to build a unified national identity.

The 13-year civil war deepened sectarian fragmentation, particularly between the ruling Alawite and majority Sunni communities. HTS’s Sunni-centric background now presents it with the considerable challenge of navigating these divides. Further to that, the group’s historical ties to ideological extremism and its origins as a militant and militarized movement contribute to a significant trust deficit both domestically and internationally.

Meanwhile the old order has been shattered. This was already happening. By the time of Assad’s downfall, the regime’s army was severely compromised. Systemic corruption, sectarian favoritism and organizational inefficiencies had crippled its effectiveness as a military force.

Before the war began with the popular uprising of 2011, the Syrian army was a sprawling institution with hundreds of thousands of personnel across various branches. By and large, loyalty to the regime was prioritized over professional competence.

A web of competing interests, deeply tied to sectarian and tribal allegiances and entrenched nepotism further eroded the army’s integrity. It had also largely lost the respect of the bulk of the Syrian