Syrians mark anniversary of Assad overthrow and look to the future  | Global News Podcast

Welcome to the Global News podcast on. YouTube, where we go behind the. headlines to find out more about a story. and why it matters. Syrians are marking. the first anniversary of the end of. Bashar al-Assad's brutal 24-year rule. It signified one of the largest. political shifts in the Middle East in. decades and brought more than 13 years. of civil war to a close. But how is the. country fairing 12 months on? to tell us. more. We're joined by our correspondent, Lena Synab, who's in Aleppo. Lena, we'll.

come to the celebrations in a moment, but first of all, just to remind us, what was life like in Syria under the. Assad? >> Well, Alex, probably you can see where I. am now. The mood, the celebration. Thousands of people are pouring into the. street to celebrate this day after a. heavy weight lifted off their chest. after 50 years of dictatorship, 50 years. of fear uh under the rule of Bashar.

Assad and his father Hazad. These were. the years of darkness in Syria where. people disappeared, where people have. been killed, tortured to death simply. because they're speaking their mind or. being in the wrong place at the wrong. time or simply because somebody reported. them. huge unjustice on Syrians that. they've lived through under the two. Assads and now it's their moment to.

celebrate that they are now free that. they are fearless and that they can. speak their mind and have a say in how. their country is going to run. >> Yeah. You were one of the first BBC. journalists into Damascus after Bashar. al-Assad was overthrown. What are your. memories? What did you see on that day? >> Well, it was like a night that is. unforgettable. I didn't sleep at all. It. was uh we were watching what's happening.

in Helms and then the regime fell in. Helms and in the early hours of the. morning, me and my colleagues were. getting ready to get to the border. Uh. the minute we started rolling in the. car, we heard that Assad has fled. That. was around 5:00 a.m. uh in the morning, Damas time. We arrived at the Lebanese. border and waited impatiently for uh the. border crossing to open so that we. rushed into Damascus. It's a moment that. I would never forget. It was the first.

time ever in my life I enter Syria. without here especially after years of. being blocked and uh and being under the. arrest list. Uh I went I crossed in uh. there were no uh border police uh you. know checkpoints were abandoned. These. same checkpoints where people. disappeared from and I remember clearly. that day when I was you know reporting I. said it was the first time uh ever in my. life I report without fear and I feel.

this jubilant moment that every Syrians. uh have shared that day. Yeah, I can see. behind you people holding up posters. with protest slogans on. That kind of. behavior would have been unthinkable in. the Assad years, wouldn't it? >> Absolutely. And if you can see around. me, they are trying to show up behind. the cameras. They're holding their. flags. They're, you know, surrounding me. everywhere. Uh we're actually near Sadal.

Alabi's main square in Aleppo. And. during Assad's time, it's unheard of. that you would hold a camera or a mic. and be in the streets. There would be. plenty of security surrounding you. There will be someone listening to what. you're saying. And you have to go on the. streets with a reminder from the. government to monitor where you go, what. you see, who you talk to. And the new. government is finding its way uh to lead. Syria. Of course, they still lack the.

experience, but they have the goodwill. for a better country. uh we have seen uh. freedom of expression in in the country. that we hope it's going to continue the. same and really uh there's no comparison. between what Syria is living today and. how it was under Assad. >> Yes, you mentioned the new government, the government of President Ahmed al. Sharah. It's been working to gain. acceptance on the international stage. How has that been going? Well, if you. look back for a whole year for somebody.

who had a bounty of $10,000 US dollars. on him, who was on the terrorism list, now he almost visited many main capitals. around the world. He uh was the first. Syrian president ever to visit DC. He. was the first president since 1967. to speak at the uh UN Security Council. Um he managed to lift sanctions on. Syria. He's done a lot for the country. But the people inside here that was.

mainly focused on uh gaining the. international acceptance, gaining the uh. um you know support of the international. community, but little has been done. internally and and to be fair, I mean. this is not something that he would be. able to control because Syria is in dire. need for money to reconstruct. The World. Bank estimates that the country needs. over $200 billion dollar to uh rebuild. its economy and redo the reconstruction.

after the damage that Assad has left. And that money hasn't arrived yet. Uh. but uh president or intering president. Ahmed al- Shara has done a great job in. in uh you know building bridges uh. regionally and internationally and got. Syria back to the world. What's the. number one challenge that Syria faces. today? >> I think the economy is the number one. challenge, but also the management and. how this government is going to lead.

because so far many criticize that this. new leadership is depending with its. appointment and the government on. loyalty and nepotism rather than. professional candidacy and autocrat. And. that's what the country needs. that. needs the professional Syrians, not the. ones who accompanied al-Shar during his. trip to uh uh to power. Uh they need the. professionals. They need the experienced. Syrians to lead and not uh the appointed.

now uh men behind the scenes who rule. the country at the moment. They are the. shakes. So the clergymen or just the men. with beards that accompanied Aler and. now they are in many um you know leading. positions and that's I think a big. challenge and the second challenge is. how is going to uh provide a Syria for. all a Syria that protects all people all. Syrians of minorities and majority uh. Syrians as well rather than just um you.

know uh being a Syria for the Sunnis. like many pro-sh portrays it. Thanks, Lena. And you can hear more of. that interview on the Global News. podcast. Subscribe wherever you get your. BBC News podcasts. You can also. subscribe to us here on YouTube. And if. you'd like us to cover a story, do. message us in the comments below.