Residents remove rubble from damaged buildings in the al-Hajar al-Aswad neighbourhood on the outskirts of Damascus, Syria. File
| Photo Credit: AP

A Syrian fighter, left, stands guard as members of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad’s army step on his portrait as a sign of disdain, lining up before they register their names with Syrian rebels as part of an “identification and reconciliation process” in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

A few days after insurgents in Syria overthrew President Bashar Assad, his ruling Baath party announced it was freezing its activities, marking a stunning change in fortunes for the political group that had ruled for more than six decades.

Many members of the party’s leadership have gone into hiding and some have fled the country. In a symbolic move, Syria’s new rulers have turned the former party headquarters in Damascus into a center where former members of the army and security forces line up to register their names and hand over their weapons.

Calls are on the rise to officially dissolve the Arab Socialist Baath Party that had ruled Syria since 1963.

Many Syrians — including former party members — say its rule damaged relations with other Arab countries and aided in the spread of corruption that brought the war-torn nation to its knees.

“The party should not only be dissolved, it should go to hell,” said Mohammed Hussein Ali, 64, who worked for a state oil company and was a party member for decades until he quit at the start of Syria’s anti-government uprising in 2011 that turned into civil war. He never left the country and said he is happy the Baath rule is over.

An official with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, the group that led the insurgent offensive that overthrew Assad, said no official decision has been made on what to do with the Baath party.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter, noted that HTS leader Ahmad al-Sharaa has said that officials who committed crimes against the Syrian people over the past decades will be brought to justice and hinted that they include party members.

The Baath party, whose aim was to unify Arab states in one nation, was founded by two Syrian Arab nationalists, Michel Aflaq and Salaheddine Bitar, in 1947 and at one point ruled two Arab countries, Iraq and Syria.

A rivalry developed between the Syrian branch under Assad and his late father, Hafez, and the one in Iraq under Saddam Hussein, who was removed from power by a U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

In Syria, the Baath party became inextricably associated with the Assad family, which took power in 1970. For decades, the family used the party and its pan-Arab ideology to control the country. Many senior military jobs were held by members of the family’s minority Alawite sect, and party membership was used as a cover to give it a nationalist rather than a sectarian nature.

A former soldier and decades-long Baath party member who came to party headquarters to cut his military ties, Abdul-Rahman Ali, said he had no idea it was founded by Aflaq and Bitar. He had always thought that Hafez Assad was the founder.

“I am happy. We have been liberated from fear,” said Ali, 43. “Even the walls had ears. We didn’t dare express opinions with anyone.” He was referring to the dreaded security and intelligence agencies that detained and tortured people who expressed criticism of Assad or government officials.

Many Syrians were required to join the Baath Vanguards, the party’s youth branch, while in elementary school, where Arab nationalist and socialist ideology was emphasized.

It was difficult for people who were not party members to get government jobs or join the army or the security and intelligence services.

In 2012, a year after Syria’s uprising began, a paragraph of the constitution stating that the Baath party was the leader of the nation and society was abolished, in a move aimed to appease the public’s demand for political reforms. In practice, however, the party remained in control, with members holding majority seats in parliament and government.

Another former soldier, who gave only his first name, Ghadir, out of fear of reprisals as a member of the Alawite sect, said he came from a poor family and joined the party so he could enter the military for a stable income.

“You could not take any job if you were not a Baathist,” he said.

While few are mourning the party’s fall in Syria, some are concerned that the Sunni majority that now controls the country could carry out a purge similar to the one in Iraq after Saddam’s fall.

A de-Baathification committee was formed in Iraq and its main job was purging Saddam loyalists from government and military institutions. The Sunni minority considered it a means of sectarian score-settling by Iraq’s Shiite majority. The Sunni resentment and disenfranchisement that followed helped to drive the rise of extremist groups in the country including al-Qaida and the Islamic State in Iraq.

In Syria, a Baath party statement issued three days after Assad’s fall called on all members to hand their weapons and public cars to the new authorities.

On Dec. 24, party member and former army colonel Mohammed Merhi was among hundreds who lined up at the former party headquarters and handed over weapons.

Merhi said the Baath party should be given another opportunity because its principles are good but were exploited over decades. But he said he might want to join another party if Syria becomes a multiparty democracy in the future.

He handed over his Soviet Makarov pistol and received a document saying he can now move freely in the country after reconciling with the new authorities.

“I want to become again a normal Syrian citizen and work to build a new Syria,” he said. (AP) NSA NSA

A car is seen damaged after recent Russian attacks in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Dec. 20, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

The year 2024 was marked by a series of international conflicts that challenged geopolitical landscapes and global stability. From the ongoing war in Ukraine to escalating tensions in the Middle East, the year witnessed shifting alliances and devastating military campaigns. The ripple effects of these crises extended far beyond their immediate regions, influencing diplomatic relations and strategic priorities worldwide. This article delves into the key conflicts that defined the year, tracing their evolution and impact on the global stage.

The year began with Russia continuing its 2022 war against Ukraine in a purported move to stop the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) expansion towards its borders. Three months earlier, in October 2023, the militant group Hamas launched an assault in Gaza, killing more than 1,000 people and triggering massive retaliation from Israel against Palestine.

As the war raged on, Israel’s fight extended to other areas against Iranian proxies, of which Hamas is one. Houthi rebels in Yemen intercepted and attacked ships and other vessels they identified as aiding Israel. Hezbollah militants in Lebanon exchanged fire with Israel at the border.

In September, Israel targeted Hezbollah’s paging devices, killing dozens and injuring hundreds in a spiraling regional escalation. A ceasefire deal in November cooled regional tensions. However, Syrian rebels launched lightning offensives against the Iran-backed Assad government and toppled his regime, triggering a fresh bout of violence.

With the victory of Donald Trump in November’s U.S. presidential polls, Ukraine’s much-needed American backing is liable to change. This marks a turning point in the war. Meanwhile, the Iranian proxies stand weakened in the region, allowing Israel the space to further strengthen its regional position.

We take a look at how these international conflicts and others have evolved through the year.

Global battlegrounds

The Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) database records every conflict event and the associated fatalities. With this data, the Conflict Index is prepared. The Index ranks each country based on four parameters – Deadliness (number of fatalities), Danger (number of events of violence against civilians), Diffusion (how widespread the violence is) and Fragmentation (Number of non-state armed, organised groups).

Based on these parameters, each country is given a conflict category and ranking.

For the 12 months preceding December 12, 2024, 10 countries were categorised as extreme-conflict countries. These are – Palestine, Myanmar, Syria, Mexico, Nigeria, Brazil, Lebanon, Sudan, Cameroon and Colombia.

Shift from Afghanistan to Ukraine and Palestine

As the year draws to a close, both new and ongoing wars have resulted in surging deaths across conflict zones. From January 1 to December 13 this year, over 200,000 people were killed in battles, explosions, remote violence, and violence against civilians.

Approximately half of this toll comes primarily from three countries: Ukraine, Palestine, and Myanmar.

In previous years, Afghanistan accounted for a significant proportion of conflict-related deaths, particularly leading up to the Taliban’s takeover of the government. However, in the past two years, fatalities from Ukraine and Palestine have made up a substantial share of the death toll. Meanwhile, following a military coup that overthrew the government in Myanmar, the country has also contributed significantly to recent years’ rising fatality figures.

Impact on civilians

One of the most troubling aspects of the conflicts over the past year has been the increasing number of fatalities resulting from targeted violence against civilians. In 2024, an average of around 5,500 fatalities per month were reported due to such violence, up from approximately 5,300 per month in 2023 and about 3,100 per month in 2020.

ACLED’s conflict exposure measures provide another lens to analyze the impact on civilians. These measures indicate the percentage of a country’s population living within 5 km of a conflict event. For example, while the absolute number of people exposed to conflict in Palestine and Lebanon is smaller compared to other countries, the percentage of the population affected is significantly higher, highlighting the more pervasive nature of conflict in these regions.

As the year ends, these crises serve as a stark reminder of the urgent need for international diplomacy, conflict resolution, and humanitarian intervention. Without sustained efforts to address these issues, the cycle of violence risks perpetuating instability and suffering well into the future.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s military chief Abu Hassan al-Hamwi is pictured during an interview in the Syrian western port city of Latakia, on December 17, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AFP

The military chief of Syria’s victorious Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham said on Tuesday (December 17, 2024) it would be “the first” to dissolve its armed wing and integrate into the armed forces.

“In any state, all military units must be integrated into this institution,” Murhaf Abu Qasra, known by his nom de guerre Abu Hassan al-Hamawi, said in an interview with AFP, adding that “we will be, God willing, among the first to take the initiative [to dissolve our armed wing]”.

Also read | Syria’s new rulers step up engagement with the world

He added that Kurdish-held areas of Syria would be integrated under the country’s new leadership, adding that the group rejects federalism and that “Syria will not be divided”.

“The Kurdish people are one of the components of the Syrian people… Syria will not be divided and there will be no federal entities,” he said.

A U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led administration controls swathes of north and northeastern Syria, and has recently been battling Turkish-backed groups which have captured several Kurdish towns.

Abu Qasra also called on the international community to “find a solution” to repeated Israeli strikes and an “incursion” into Syrian territory.

“We view the Israeli strikes on military sites and the incursion into southern Syria as injust… we call on the international community to find a solution to this matter,” he said.

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Syrian military assets in what it says is a bid to prevent them falling into hostile hands.

It has also sent troops into the UN-patrolled buffer zone on the Golan Heights.

Abu Qasra also called on Western governments to lift the “terrorist” designation from HTS and its leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, now using his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa.

“We call on the United States and all countries to lift this designation… on his person and the whole group,” he said, describing it as “unjust” and saying that the group “will ultimately be integrated into state institutions”.

The radical Sunni Islamist group has been proscribed as a terrorist organisation by Western governments including the United States and Britain.

It has recently sought to moderate its rhetoric and assure the international community that religious and other minorities will be protected.

Syria’s new rulers stepped up engagement on Tuesday (December 17, 2024) with countries that deemed ousted President Bashar al-Assad a pariah, with the French flag raised at the embassy for the first time in over a decade.

Mr. Assad fled Syria just over a week ago, as his forces abandoned tanks and other equipment in the face of a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

The collapse of Mr. Assad’s rule on December 8 stunned the world. It sparked celebrations around Syria and beyond after his crackdown on democracy protests in 2011 led to one of the deadliest wars of the century.

Rooted in Syria’s branch of al-Qaeda, HTS is proscribed by several Western governments as a terrorist organisation, though it has sought to moderate its rhetoric and pledged to protect the country’s religious minorities.

The EU will reopen its mission in Syria following “constructive” talks with its new leadership, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said, describing it as a “very important step”.

Turkiye and Qatar, which backed the anti-Assad opposition, have reopened embassies in Damascus, while U.S. and British officials have launched communications with Syria’s new leaders.

France, an early backer of the uprising, sent a delegation to Damascus on Tuesday, with special envoy Jean-Francois Guillaume saying his country was preparing to stand with Syrians during the transitional period.

An AFP journalist saw the French flag raised in the embassy’s entrance hall for the first time since the mission was shuttered in 2012.

After meeting Syria’s new leaders, the United Nations humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher said on Tuesday he was “encouraged”, and that there was a “basis for ambitious scaling-up of vital humanitarian support”.

German diplomats were also in Damascus on Tuesday, while Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni said her country was ready to engage with the new leadership.

Syria came under international sanctions over Mr. Assad’s crackdown on protests, which sparked a war that killed more than 5,00,000 people and forced half of the population to flee their homes.

Mr. Assad left behind a country scarred by decades of torture, disappearances and summary executions, as well as economic mismanagement that has left 70 percent of the population in need of aid.

Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, who heads HTS, stressed the need in a meeting with a delegation of British diplomats to end “all sanctions imposed on Syria so that Syrian refugees can return to their country”.

He also said Syria’s rebel factions will be “disbanded and the fighters trained to join the ranks of the defence ministry”.

“Syria must remain united,” he said, according to posts on the group’s Telegram channel. “There must be a social contract between the state and all religions to guarantee social justice”.

The EU’s Kallas said the lifting of sanctions and removing HTS from its blacklist would depend on “when we see positive steps, not the words, but actual steps and deeds from the new leadership”.

The United Nations expects one million people to return to Syria in the first half of 2025, after the war pushed six million people to seek refuge abroad.

‘Colour of peace’

In Damascus’s old souk, many shops had reopened more than a week since Assad’s ouster.

Some shopkeepers were painting their store facades white, erasing the colours of the old Syrian flag that under Assad’s rule had become ubiquitous.

“We have been working non-stop for a week to paint everything white,” Omar Bashur, a 61-year-old artisan said.

“White is the colour of peace,” he added.

Abu Imad, another vendor, was selling vegetables from his car at a square in central Damascus.

“Everything happened at once: the regime fell, prices dropped, life got better. We hope it isn’t temporary,” he said.

With Assad gone, the Syrian pound started to recover against the dollar, moneychangers and traders said, as foreign currencies again became available on the local market.

Iran, which backed Assad throughout the civil war, said its embassy in Syria — abandoned and vandalised in the wake of Assad’s fall — would reopen once the “necessary conditions” are met.

Russia was the other main backer of Assad’s rule.

On Monday, the ousted president broke his silence with a statement on Telegram saying that he only left to Russia once Damascus had fallen, and denounced the country’s new leaders as “terrorists”.

“My departure from Syria was neither planned nor did it occur during the final hours of the battles,” said the statement.

Several former officials had told AFP that Mr. Assad was already out of the country hours before the rebels seized Damascus.

‘My tears were dry’

Around the country, Syrians deprived for years of news of missing loved ones searched desperately for clues that might help them find closure.

In a war-ravaged Palestinian refugee camp near Damascus, Radwan Adwan was stacking stones to rebuild his father’s grave, finally able to return to the cemetery.

“Without the fall of the regime, it would have been impossible to see my father’s grave again,” said 45-year-old Adwan.

Yarmuk camp was bombed and besieged by Assad’s forces, emptied of most of its residents and reduced to ruins before its recapture in 2018, when access to the cemetery was officially banned.

“When we arrived, there was no trace of the grave,” said Adwan.

His mother Zeina sat on a small metal chair in front of her husband’s gravesite.

She was “finally” able to weep for him, she said. “Before, my tears were dry.”

Geir Pederson, the United Nations’ special envoy to Syria, center, listens to a woman who was looking for her missing relative in the Saydnaya prison, during his visit to the infamous Saydnaya military prison, in Saydnaya north of Damascus, Syria, on December 16, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

The United Nations told the leader of the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group which toppled Bashar al-Assad that Syria must have a “credible and inclusive” transition.

The UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen who arrived in Damascus on Sunday, has met Abu Mohammed al-Jolani — who now goes under his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa — Mr. Pedersen’s office said Monday in a statement on Telegram.

He also met interim Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir, it said.

Mr. Pedersen met them after Saturday’s international meeting on Syria in Jordan, and stressed “the need for a credible and inclusive Syrian-owned and led political transition based on the principles of United Nations Security Council resolution 2254 (2015)”.

The UN envoy also underlined “the intention of the United Nations to render all assistance to the Syrian people”, and was briefed on their “challenges and priorities”, the statement added.

It said Mr. Pedersen had several engagements planned in the days ahead, but did not elaborate.

Mr. Assad was toppled by a lightning 11-day rebel offensive that swept down from northwest Syria, with fighters entering the capital on December 8.

Abandoned by his Russian and Iranian backers, Mr. Assad fled into exile in Moscow, bring to an end five decades of abuses by his clan.

The HTS group that led his overthrow is a former branch of al-Qaeda in Syria, and the United States and other Western governments still classify it as a “terrorist” group.

While hailing Mr. Assad’s downfall, several nations have said they will wait to see how Syria’s new Sunni Muslim authorities treat minorities in the multi-ethnic and multi-confessional country.

Several countries including the United States and Britain have said they have already made contact with Jolani.

UN Special Envoy Geir Pedersen meeting with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, now using his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus.
| Photo Credit: AFP

The Syrian Islamist leader whose group led the offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad met on Sunday with U.N. envoy Geir Pedersen, who was visiting Damascus, said a statement on the rebels’ Telegram channel.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, now using his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa, discussed with Pedersen “the changes that have occurred on the political scene which make it necessary to update” a 2015 United Nations Security Council resolution “to suit the new reality”, the statement said.

Jolani’s HTS is rooted in Syria’s branch of Al-Qaeda, the Al-Nusra Front, designated a “terrorist” organisation by many Western governments.

U.N. Security Council Resolution 2254 of 2015, to which the rebel statement referred, set out a roadmap for a political settlement in Syria, and also mentioned Nusra’s “terrorist” designation.

On Tuesday, Pedersen said the fact that Nusra was listed by the U.N. Security Council as a terrorist organisation was “obviously a complicating factor” in efforts to find a way forward.

However, he stressed that it was important to view HTS, which broke with Nusra in 2016 and has sought to soften its image, through the events of the civil war.

The rebel statement on Sunday said Jolani had emphasised “the need to focus on Syrian territorial unity, reconstruction and achieving economic development”.

He also raised “the importance of providing a safe environment for the return of refugees and providing economic and political support for this”, said the statement.

Earlier on Sunday, Pedersen urged a “political process… that is inclusive of all Syrians.

“That process obviously needs to be led by the Syrians themselves” with “help and assistance” from the rest of the world, he said.

A Syrian fighter shouts at people suspect of looting at a residential complex of former Bashar Assad’s military officers at the village of Husseiniyeh, in the outskirts of Damascus, Syria.
| Photo Credit: AP

Britain on Sunday announced a 50 million pounds ($63 million) aid package to help vulnerable Syrians after rebels last week overthrew President Bashar al-Assad.

Millions of Syrians need humanitarian assistance after more than a decade of civil war that shattered much of the country’s infrastructure and displaced large numbers of people. Some of the many who fled the country are returning from neighbouring states.

By the numbers

– 30 million pounds will provide “immediate help to more than a million people including food, shelter, emergency healthcare, and protection for the most vulnerable”, Britain said in a statement.

That money, mostly distributed through U.N. channels, will support “emerging needs including the rehabilitation of essential services such as water, hospitals and schools”.

– To help Syrians in neighbouring countries, 10 million pounds will go to the World Food Programme (WFP) in Lebanon and 10 million pounds will go to Jordan via the WFP and the U.N.’s refugee agency.

“The fall of the horrific Assad regime provides a once-in-a-generation chance for the people of Syria,” foreign minister David Lammy said. “We’re committed to supporting the Syrian people as they chart a new course.”

Smoke billows, after Syria’s Bashar al-Assad was ousted, near Damascus, Syria.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Britain has had diplomatic contact with the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group that swept Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from power last week, British foreign minister David Lammy said on Sunday.

“HTS remains a proscribed organisation, but we can have diplomatic contact and so we do have diplomatic contact as you would expect,” Lammy told broadcasters.

“Using all the channels that we have available, and those are diplomatic and, of course, intelligence-led channels, we seek to deal with HTS where we have to.”

On Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States has had direct contact with HTS.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. File.
| Photo Credit: AP

Hasina involved in forced disappearances, says Bangladesh inquiry commission

In a new turn of events, the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearance set up by the interim government of Bangladesh filed a report on Saturday (December 14, 2024) stating that it found the “involvement of Ex-PM Sheikh Hasina” in enforced disappearances of individuals during her tenure.

Our government strengthening Constitution, Congress repeatedly wounded it after tasting blood: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (December 14, 2024) said that the Congress, having “tasted blood”, repeatedly wounded the Constitution while his government’s policies and decisions since it took office in 2014 have been aimed at boosting India’s strength and unity in line with the vision of the Constitution.

Parliamentary proceedings: Are we not part of this nation, asks Manipur MP in Lok Sabha

While Outer Manipur MP Alfred Kanngam Arthur cited the Oting killings of 2021 in Nagaland and the ongoing conflict in Manipur to raise questions about the government’s commitment to Constitution, first-time MP Chandra Shekhar “Azad” asked whether certain sections of society in India were as free as the Constitution envisioned them to be.

J&K leaders Mehbooba, Tarigami, Masoodi oppose ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal

Opposing the ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal, several Jammu and Kashmir leaders claimed on Saturday (December 14, 2024) that it is actually aimed at creating a ‘one nation, one party’ situation.

Hezbollah leader says main supply line via Syria has been cut

The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants says the fall of Bashar Assad in Syria has cut a main supply line for the group but it can find other ways to bring in weapons.

U.S. officials have been in direct contact with the Syrian rebel group that ousted Assad, Blinken says

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday that American officials have been in direct contact with the Syrian rebel group that spearheaded the overthrow of President Bashar Assad’s government but is designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States and others.

Conclude EU-India FTA to counter forces of protectionism and transactionalism, says Portuguese Foreign Minister

An early conclusion of the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is necessary to “counter” the global trends of protectionism and transactionalism, Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel told The Hindu during a four-day visit to India.

Muslims will soon become majority, says Bengal Minister Hakim

A fresh controversy has erupted over remarks of West Bengal Minister and Mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation Mayor Firhad Hakim who is heard saying in a video that soon “we will become majority”.

Row over Centre’s demand for payment of ₹132 crore as outstanding charges for air evacuation efforts during disasters

A bitter stand-off between the Union government and the State is unfolding with a communication sent by the Ministry of Defence on October 22 urging the Kerala government to pay up the outstanding charges of ₹132.61 crore for air evacuation operations carried out by the Indian Air Force (IAF) as part of the disaster response between 2006 and September 2024, evoking sharp reactions from the Left and the Congress leaders.