From fighter to police in post-Assad Damascus

Until recently, these people were at war with the Syrian government. They have now set up checkpoints across the capital. They are former fighters of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). The Islamist group, once an affiliate of al-Qaeda, overthrew the government of Bashar al-Assad in early December. Restoring security is one of HTS’s top priorities after 13 years of civil war. The group installed figures like former rebel Basel al-Helal as Damascus’s police chief. The militants-turned-police are now directing traffic and trying to return property looted during the recent overthrow of the government. They also claim their mission is to carry out raids to arrest drug traffickers, thieves and former government officials. Before ousting al-Assad, HTS ran local governments in parts of northern Syria it controlled. There, he was accused of rights violations, including the imprisonment of critics. Some people worry about this. They are concerned about how HTS will govern now that it controls a wider and more diverse region of the country. These HTS warriors argue that concerns about them are misplaced.