Author: Mert H. Akgun

Following the collapse of the Assad regime on Dec. 8, Syria stands on the brink of a new era. Syrians, who have paid a heavy price for their freedom, now cautiously hold high hopes for the future. The revolution was led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and its leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa. As a result, the transitional period is currently under the leadership of al-Sharaa, who toppled the former regime. The challenge is now translating a military victory into a sustainable political transition. While the transition process currently appears relatively stable, serious difficulties still loom on the horizon – including preserving…

The collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria has opened a critical window for accountability. For more than a decade, Syria has endured some of the most egregious crimes of the 21st century: systematic torture, ill-treatment, indiscriminate bombardments and the forcible deportation of civilians. According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, a nongovernmental organization (NGO), between March 2011, when the civil war broke out and March 2024, Syrian regime forces killed 201,260 civilians, including 23,039 children, and 15,074 of these victims were tortured to death. These figures reveal that, on average, 42 people, including five children, were killed in…