Mohammed Hassno, director of the Syrian Assistance Coordination Unit (ACU), a humanitarian opposition organization, told Rudaw’s Nwenar Fatih about the importance of reconciliation and rebuilding the nation following the rebel-led offensive that ousted President Bashar al-Assad.
“We do not want external projects,” Hassno said regarding a framework for the rebuilding of Syria, “We want Syrians to participate… and rest from the woes of war that were extended for decades.”
He added that the United Nations cannot lead this process without the active participation of the Syrian people.
Hassno emphasized that the rebels' military gains must transition into a political process that consolidates the victory for the Syrian people and facilitates a smooth political process.
Syria’s civil war dramatically reignited late last month when a coalition of rebels led by the jihadist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) launched a blistering offensive against the Syrian army, seizing the northern city of Aleppo, Hama, Homs, and culminating their victory by capturing the capital Damascus as rebels said Assad fled the country, ending over five decades of Baathist rule.
“The battle of rebuilding is the hardest and the one that gets prolonged,” he said, emphasizing the challenges ahead.
“The most important thing that we think of is that we strengthen assurance and stability for all the components of our people,” Hassno said.
Syria continues to grapple with instability and insecurity, as recent escalations have displaced thousands. The country, ravaged by a civil war that began in 2011 following uprisings against the now-dethroned Assad, has seen hundreds of thousands killed and millions left in need of humanitarian assistance.
“I call on all the Syrian people… to return to their country and to contribute to rebuilding their country,” the director added.
According to a 2023 report from the United Nations Refugee Agency, more than 12 million people have been displaced from Syria across the region.
“Today is for reconciliation, forgiveness, to work and rebuild and not to look to the past,” he said.
HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani on Sunday ordered his forces not to approach any official institutions in the capital and declared that these institutions would remain under the supervision of Syrian regime Prime Minister Mohammed al-Jalali until their official handover.
“Surely there must be fair accountability and questioning for those whose hands are stained with blood,” Hassno stressed.
Agnes Callamard, the head of Amnesty International, called on Sunday for human rights violations perpetrators in Syria to justice “without the possibility of the death penalty.”
