REPORTING. Syria: “We were heroes and now they are spitting on us…” in Latakia, in the stronghold of Bashar, the concern of the inhabitants

In the center of Latakia, only the feet of the gigantic statue of Hafez el-Assad still stand in the main square. Behind, the green, white and black flag of the new Syria flies in the wind. With the takeover of power by the radical Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Alawites are wondering about their future. For fifty years, this Shiite branch ruled Syria, with Hafez al-Assad at its head, then his son Bashar. If the country’s new strongman, Abu Mohammed al-Joulani, wants to be reassuring and promises to respect the rights of minorities, distrust and concern reign.
With drawn features, hollow cheeks, a dark look, Alaà Hassoun, an Alawite returning to Latakia, still bears the marks of his stay in Damascus, in Sadnaya prison, the “human slaughterhouse” of the Assad regime. “They forced me to help them dispose of the bodies of the men they executed in a mass grave behind the prison,” remembers the forty-year-old, fallen soldier from the division of Hilal al-Assad, Bashar’s cousin. “The leader of the cell had to eliminate someone every week, otherwise he was the one who was killed. Many died of heart attacks from fear of beatings and torture. Others from illnesses. We lived among corpses. The only reason I stayed alive is because I’m Alawite, they trusted me. My number was 1882.”

“We are afraid to go out after 9 p.m.”

A few kilometers away, in Qardaha, the birthplace of Hafez al-Assad, two young HTS soldiers patrol, a Kalashnikov in hand. The luxurious properties of the Assad family have become fields of ruins. The mausoleum, once imposing, is now blackened by fire and covered in graffiti denouncing the regime. Every day, dozens of Syrians come to spit on his grave. Only family photos have not yet been stolen from the villas of the former family that held the reins of power. Ali, his neighbor, welcomes with open arms Alaà Hassoun who returns here for the first time. He is also a former soldier. He fought in the Syrian army, in Aleppo and Damascus, until Bashar al-Assad fled.

Despite the fall of the regime, he continued to remain loyal to it. “Bashar was a good man. It was the people around him who created the chaos,” continues the fifty-year-old Alawite. Ali assures that he does not fear reprisals. “We killed each other on one side, as well as the other, so we are all a little at fault. And the HTS soldiers are there to ensure our safety. They seem caring. »
But not everyone is reassured by the promises and prefers to hole up at home. “Of course, we lived in poverty and life was hard under Bashar al-Assad, but at least we did not fear for our safety,” explains this bald-headed villager, a civil servant electrician. We are afraid to go out after nine p.m. »
A former army officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, admits his pessimism: “I lost everything: my job, my house, a certain future. We were heroes and now they spit on us.” This soldier, who was part of the Aleppo regiment, is now forced to return to live with his parents. “We don’t know what will become of us and our country. We were such a strong country, and now we are threatened on one side by Turkey, on the other by Israel. »

Russian military base

Russia, Syria’s main military ally under Bashar al-Assad, is questioning the evacuation of its forces from the Tartus naval base and the Hmeimim air base, located about 20 km southeast of Latakia. At first glance, the air base appears deserted, not a single shadow on the horizon. Only the oranges rot in the abandoned military barracks. “Their interests were linked to the criminal Assad regime. Russia can reconsider its position and take the initiative to reach out to the new administration to show that it has no animosity towards the Syrian people and that the era of the Assad regime is finally over,” asserted Obeida Arnaout, spokesperson for the new Syrian transitional government of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebel group.
Camping at the entrance to the base, a few HTS soldiers warn: “The road is mined and Russian soldiers will shoot you.”