Enab Baladi – Nouran al-Samman
On the evening of December 7, 2024, as the night of the 8th approached, and in the early hours of the dawn, Syrians learned that the tyrant had fallen, and they could finally express what they had long been unable to voice.
In a historic scene that Syrians had always dreamed of, the regime of the ousted president Bashar al-Assad fell, after decades of oppression and tyranny. By early morning, celebrations began to fill the country with joy that had been long awaited; finally, the regime that had weighed heavily upon them for decades was gone.
News of Bashar al-Assad’s escape was announced through local and international media in the early hours of the dawn, amidst speculations and analyses regarding the reasons behind this sudden fall of the regime, coinciding with reports of the regime’s withdrawal from several major cities, and scenes of soldiers removing their military uniforms in the streets.
The streets were filled with celebrations in the liberated cities, while expatriates shared their joy through phone calls and video clips.
Between joy and apprehension, Syrian journalist Homam, residing in the Netherlands, described the moment of Assad’s regime’s fall as “historic and unforgettable,” indicating that it carried deep human dimensions.
Homam stated that he read the news of Bashar al-Assad’s escape around five in the morning, hearing cries of joy rising in his neighborhood from fellow Syrians, while WhatsApp groups filled with congratulatory messages.
He added, “For the first time in 14 years, I spoke freely with my family. I felt that I could finally express what I had not dared to say before due to the security situation,” describing that conversation as “the most beautiful” in his life, feeling that he was living a part of a historic moment, despite the geographical distance.
Like many others, Homam watched scenes of soldiers changing their clothes in the streets and other soldiers talking about being sent home by their officers.
Despite the overwhelming joy, Homam admitted that he initially faced “mixed feelings, between joy and fear of future scenarios,” but he quickly regained his balance, reminding himself that the fall marked “the end of one of the largest sources of terrorism and violence in the region.”
While sharing a video clip on his personal social media account of an imam saying that “the coward has fled… Bashar has fled,” Homam confirmed that this moment marks the beginning of a new history for Syrians, but it requires awareness and determination to achieve the equality and justice they have long dreamed of.
Echoes of victory… Between return and hope
Tamara Abboud, a young Syrian residing in Turkey, described the moment of Assad’s regime’s fall with words evoking the poetry of Ibrahim Nagy and the voice of Umm Kulthum, “It was a structure of fantasy that has collapsed.”
Tamara, who followed the moment through screens, characterized it as “historic and exceptional in every sense of the word,” indicating that she felt as though she were living a dream she once thought would never come true.
Tamara further affirmed that the echoes of this event resonate in every corner of Syria; the return of refugees to their homeland, despite the harshness of years in exile, and the laughter of people beginning to return to the streets is a clear sign that the regime’s fall was more than just a political event. It marked the beginning of a new phase filled with hope for change that once seemed impossible.
Despite the difficult security, economic, and service conditions facing Syria today, Tamara believes in the resilience of the Syrian people, who managed to overthrow a repressive regime. She told Enab Baladi, “I believe that the Syrian people will not allow the tragedy to repeat, and with their determination, they will insist on building a future that befits them, just as they made their revolution, which seemed impossible 13 years ago.”
In the Syrian capital, Damascus, Nour Idlibi, a university student, experienced the moment of Assad’s regime’s fall with mixed feelings of joy and anticipation. Nour said that she woke up around five in the morning to the sounds of celebration and gunfire in the streets, adding, “The sounds of festivities filled the place with the flight of the previous regime’s army; I realized then that we were facing a real change.”
Nour described the transformation as not merely the fall of a regime, but the beginning of a new era filled with hope, considering that “today there is freedom of expression, and that in itself is a great achievement; what we lived that night is a moment that will be immortalized in the memory of those who experienced it.”
Despite the challenges facing Syria, Nour sees positive indicators, pointing out that delegations from different countries have begun to arrive in the country, opening the door to new opportunities, and she continued, “The future is uncertain, but it is definitely better than it was under oppression and restrictions.”
From exile to freedom
The fall of Assad’s regime represents a historic turning point in the modern course of Syria, where the chapters of the future are being rewritten by the Syrians themselves, after long years of conflict and suffering that exhausted the country. The images of overturned statues of al-Assad and torn posters that filled public buildings for decades have become prominent symbols marking the end of a repressive era that dominated daily life.
For Mansour, a young Syrian residing in Turkey, the fall of Assad’s regime was an exceptional moment that restored hope he thought he had lost long ago. He told Enab Baladi, “I felt that the hope we had lost has returned. The moment of the fall represented for me a reclaiming of 14 years of struggle, from the first protests to the displacement.”
He added, “The return of Syrians to their streets freely is the greatest evidence that change is real.”
He continued, “It is enough to see people who have been deprived of their country for many years, some for 40 years or more, able to return today.”
Mansour linked the moment of the regime’s fall to his call with his family in Damascus, informing him that “the revolutionaries have reached Damascus.” He recalled that on the night of the regime’s fall, he gathered with friends who had shared the siege and displacement, to experience that historical moment together. “It was a new moment added to our unforgettable life moments,” he expressed.
Enab Baladi surveyed the opinions of a group of Syrians in the capital, Damascus, and they all agreed that they did not expect al-Assad to fall so quickly, many thought that the regime’s collapse would not occur before Damascus witnessed a decisive battle in the city center. However, the Eid takbirs heard in the streets, in addition to the sight of the Syrian army’s flight, provided a hope that materialized faster than expected when Bashar al-Assad fled.
The end of an era
In analyzing the repercussions of 13 years of crisis, the REACH initiative published a report on January 22, stating that the political transformation following the collapse of Assad’s government represents an opportunity for a comprehensive approach that addresses the needs of the affected populations across Syria.
The report added that in order for the humanitarian community to remain accountable to the affected populations, it needs to ensure that ongoing funding and assistance will effectively keep pace with the evolving needs, priorities, and aspirations of Syrians during this critical period of change.
Before the fall of the regime, the Omran Center for Strategic Studies published a research paper titled “A Reading of the Assad Regime’s State: Collapse or Restructuring,” which confirmed that the regime’s collapse was likely due to deep economic and social crises.
However, the center noted that the regime tried to manipulate the networks of elites to gain legitimacy and tools to enable its survival.
The center further indicated that the deteriorating economy and soaring production costs, along with the collapse of the Syrian pound’s value, were key factors exacerbating the crisis, affirming that the signs of collapse were clear, but the moment of the fall was postponed due to the regime’s attempts to solidify its power through a war economy.
While official statistics regarding the returnees from European countries are absent, the number of Syrian refugees returning from neighboring countries (Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Turkey) to Syria has increased following December 8, 2024.
According to statistics from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) issued on January 2, the number of Syrians returning from Jordan, Turkey, and Lebanon surpassed 115,000 individuals.
The United Nations expects that the number of returnees will reach about one million Syrians during the first six months following the fall of Assad’s regime, while emphasizing the call for host countries not to force refugees to return.