People, it appears that we now have some answers on the fall of the Assad government. And it’s quite a tale, I must say.
After years of covering Syria, I believed I had seen it all. But this latest revelation from Abu Hassan al-Hamwi, the big cheese of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s military wing, has really knocked my socks off.
So, picture this: a year ago, while we were all going about our daily lives, these rebel groups were huddled together, plotting the downfall of a 54-year-old regime. It resembles a scenario plucked straight from a spy novel, doesn’t it? Al-Hamwi revealed critical information during his initial conversation with us, the foreign media representatives, since Assad was ousted. He depicted a scenario involving a meticulously organized operation, where rebels from both the north and south collaborated seamlessly, much like a finely tuned machine. They even devised an elaborate title for it: “deterring aggression.” This sounds reminiscent of a Hollywood blockbuster, if you ask me.
However, the real twist is that they have been preparing for this moment for years. Specifically, since 2019. This was the period when HTS commenced the rigorous training of their fighters, transforming a disorganized collection of rebels into a formidable combat unit. It’s as if they were conducting their own boot camp right beneath Assad’s gaze.
Now, let us take a moment to reflect on that chaotic situation back in 2019.When the regime pushed the rebels back into Idlib province? Well, that was a wake-up call for our rebel friends. Al-Hamwi, who’s been running the show for five years now, put it pretty bluntly. He said, “All revolutionary factions realized the critical danger – the fundamental problem was the absence of unified leadership and control over battle.” That is, they learned the hard way that fighting war without everybody pitching in their part is a waste of time.
So, what did they do? They got organized. Each of them established a war room, worked collaboratively, and even pretended to use some of these newfangled tech. Apparently, they’ve got a drone unit now. I mean, who doesn’t these days, right?
But here’s what really gets me thinking. They’ve been arguing about it for more than a year, maybe even years. In the meantime, namely, at the present moment, Assad and his soldiers enjoyed the kind of power that would seem to make one feel in complete control. Right, it is exactly in that way it proves that no snuggling in this area needs to be undertaken.
And all this, of course, following upon that 2020 truce, a truce arranged by Turkey. We all felt like we hit a wall for a couple of years. The sensation is, rather than the rebels were eager to strike, then for the stealthy preparations.
Just as somebody who witnessed this war for years, it is amazing. But it also makes you wonder – what’s next? This comprises of individuals whose status has already proved, in and of itself, to be one who can lead, organize and execute a complex military operation of large scale. But can they run a country? That’s a whole different ballgame.
And what about the other players in this mess? Turkey, Russia, Iran-all maintained their position [5]. What will be the individual consequences of all of that, i.e.
No kidding – well, okay, the rest of the Middle East just became quite a lot more interesting. And as for me? I’ve got a hunch that I’ll be staying up past my bed time for quite some time to sort of make something out of it all. Stay tuned, folks. Something tells me this story is far from over.
