Syrian rebels burned the tomb of Hafez Assad

Rebels led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew the Assad dynasty, which ruled Syria for 54 years, with a lightning offensive. President Bashar Assad subsequently fled to Russia, where his family was granted asylum. Celebrations of the end of the Assad regime also include tearing down posters and statues of Bashar and Hafez Assad across Syria, the BBC reports.

Hafiz ruled the country from 1971 to 2000, when he handed over power to his son. He was born into a family of Alawites, adherents of the branch of Shiite Islam. About 10 percent of the Syrian population belongs to this religious group, and the vast majority of them strongly supported the regime of the Assad family. That is why the Alawites are now afraid that the rebels might take revenge on them. HTS and another prominent rebel group, the Free Syrian Army, belong to Sunni Islam.

However, during the visit to Kardah, the rebel delegation signed a document emphasizing the Syrian religious and cultural diversity.

HTS and their allies took control of Damascus on Sunday after thirteen years of civil war. It broke out after Bashar Assad harshly suppressed a peaceful pro-democracy uprising in 2011. During the war, more than half a million people died and 12 million others had to leave their homes.

HTS leader Abu Muhammad Julani, who has now resumed using his civil name Ahmad Hussein al-Shar, is a former jihadist who split from Al-Qaeda in 2016. Although he has recently been promoting tolerance for other religious groups, the UN envoy in Syria says that it is necessary for the rebels to put their “good messages” into practice.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Washington will recognize and fully support the future Syrian government if it emerges from a credible and inclusive process that respects minorities. The country is currently ruled by an interim government led by the former head of the rebel administration, Muhammad Bashir. She should remain in power only until March.