Finally, wait for Syria’s nat’l dialogue conference ends

damascus: Syria’s new Islamist rulers kicked off a long-awaited national dialogue conference on Tuesday as a “rare historical opportunity” to rebuild the country after fall of former President Bashar Assad and nearly 14 years of civil war.

Some 600 people from different parts of Syria were invited to the gathering in Damascus, hosted by the new authorities led by the Islamist former insurgent group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS. The group spearheaded the lightening offensive that ousted Assad in early December.

“Just as Syria has liberated itself by itself, it is appropriate for it to build itself by itself,” interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa told the conference. “What we are experiencing today is an exceptional and rare historical opportunity in which we must use every moment to serve the interests of our people and our nation and honour the sacrifices of its children,” he said.

Syria’s new rulers, who have promised an inclusive political transition since seizing power, will be closely watched by both Syrians and the international community, including countries still weighing whether to lift sanctions imposed during Assad’s authoritarian rule.

Syria faces major challenges, from rebuilding an economy and war-wrecked infrastructure, to setting up a new constitution and justice mechanisms for those accused of war crimes.

Although incidents of revenge and collective punishment have been far less widespread than expected, many in Syria’s minority communities are concerned for their future and not yet convinced by the new rulers’ promises.