Hugo Bashega

Idlib. This was the rebel stronghold in northwest Syria, run by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. HTS is now in power in Syria and trying to take its way of governing to the entire country.

Idlib. This was the rebel stronghold in northwest Syria, run by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. HTS is now in power in Syria and trying to take its way of governing to the entire country.

Dr. Hamza Al-Murawah moved from Aleppo early in the war and has witnessed all the changes in Idlib since HTS took control in 2017, including this hospital, set up in an old warehouse.

Dr. Hamza Al-Murawah moved from Aleppo early in the war and has witnessed all the changes in Idlib since HTS took control in 2017, including this hospital, set up in an old warehouse.

In Idlib, HTS run the economy like any country. They tax goods, border crossings and trade, and run telecommunication and energy companies. The income allows them to provide public services and fund their military operations. We tried to interview a local official, but were told all of them had gone to Damascus to help in the formation of the new government.

In Idlib, HTS run the economy like any country. They tax goods, border crossings and trade, and run telecommunication and energy companies. The income allows them to provide public services and fund their military operations. We tried to interview a local official, but were told all of them had gone to Damascus to help in the formation of the new government.

HTS has its roots in al-Qaeda and is considered a terrorist organization by the UK, the US and the UN. For years, they've been trying to convince the world they've changed and that they want to build a Syria for all Syrians.

HTS has its roots in al-Qaeda and is considered a terrorist organization by the UK, the US and the UN. For years, they've been trying to convince the world they've changed and that they want to build a Syria for all Syrians.

An hour's drive from Idlib, in the small Christian village of Kinaya, the church bells rang for the first time in a decade on the 8th of December to celebrate the fall of the Assad regime. People here don't seem concerned that minorities like them could be at risk with Islamists now in charge. Friar Fadi Azar says there's no reason for concern.

An hour's drive from Idlib, in the small Christian village of Kinaya, the church bells rang for the first time in a decade on the 8th of December to celebrate the fall of the Assad regime. People here don't seem concerned that minorities like them could be at risk with Islamists now in charge. Friar Fadi Azar says there's no reason for concern.

Do you think they've changed?

Do you think they've changed?

HTS dominance has not been without discontent. Protests like this one in March have been held against the detention of rivals and what some say is an authoritarian rule. Fuad Saidissa is an activist from Idlib.

HTS dominance has not been without discontent. Protests like this one in March have been held against the detention of rivals and what some say is an authoritarian rule. Fuad Saidissa is an activist from Idlib.

From the ruins of a war and a dictatorship, a nation is being reborn. But what kind of nation will it be?

From the ruins of a war and a dictatorship, a nation is being reborn. But what kind of nation will it be?