THE OUSTER OF TYRANT ASSAD PAVES THE WAY FOR PALESTINE, NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND

Fri 20 December 2024:

Last Friday was memorable for millions of Syrians all over the world who celebrated the liberation of their land from the Assad dynasty. Many raised the original flag used in Syria after it was liberated from French occupation. The revolutionaries chose to use it 13 years ago and removed the flag that represented the brutal Assad regime, which lasted for 54 years, ever since Hafez Al-Assad carried out his coup in 1970. The flag was a clever way to indicate that they do not differentiate between the two occupiers: France and the Assad family; both were tyrannical; both usurped Syria’s land; and both looted its wealth and resources. One may even say that the French occupier was more merciful than the Assad butchers, father and son alike.

The chanting on the streets on Friday was wonderful. “Raise your head high, you are a free Syrian” and “Syria wants freedom” revived the passionate national sentiments that prevailed in the 1920s. There was no division between faith and ethnic groups within Syria then; they all fought in the same trench against the French occupation, and here they are today in one trench after being liberated from the brutal Assad regime.

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In the city of Sweida, those who took to the streets recalled their history and struggle against French colonialism and held up pictures of Sultan Pasha Al-Atrash, the leader of the Great Syrian Revolution against the French. They even renamed a famous roundabout in the city after him, dropping “Basel Roundabout”, which was named after Hafez Al-Assad’s eldest son.

The scene at Umayyad Square was magnificent, remembering the Umayyad Caliphate when Damascus was the capital of the Islamic Empire that shone its light on the entire world with its knowledge, culture and civilisation.

The Assad family devastated the land, and killed, humiliated and degraded its people

The revolutionaries of northern Syria arrived in Damascus, after conquering Aleppo, Hama and Homs, to meet their fellows from Quneitra, Sweida, Daraa, and the rural areas around Damascus and its districts. They formed a fabric that no one can tear apart, in perfect harmony. Everyone is happy with the fall of the tyrant, and everyone wants to build a new Syria based on freedom, justice and dignity after the Assad family devastated the land, and killed, humiliated and degraded its people. The ousted regime tore apart Syria’s social fabric and spread sedition and conspiracies among the various sects and faith groups.

One of the astonishing ironies is that the people of Syria are draped in green, happy with the fall of the tyrant, while nationalists and Arabists in Egypt are draped in black, grieving over the fall of the butcher. They believe that the Syrian state has fallen, as if Bashar was the state and the state was Bashar, and they defend him desperately, even though he is now a fugitive who fled with his family and billions of dollars of the state’s wealth. They have seen with their own eyes the prisoners who were freed from the butcher’s slaughterhouses and heard what his savages did in Syria’s prisons, unimaginable and unacceptable to anyone with a heart. Despite such tragic testimonies and evidence, these nationalists and Arabists weep over Assad and say that he was Syria’s protector from Israel, which is now taking advantage of his fall and occupying new Syrian territory, bombing and destroying the Syrian army’s weapons, depots and factories out of fear of the new government.

Not a single Syrian bullet has been fired at the Zionist state since it occupied the Golan Heights in 1973

In saying this, they contradict themselves, and actually denounce and accuse the butcher — who betrayed his country and his people — of working for Israel, even though they meant to praise him. What they are saying is that the Zionist entity did not fear the Syrian army or its weapons when the Assad dynasty ruled, because they would not be used against the enemy; the regime used them against its own people. Not a single Syrian bullet has been fired at the Zionist state since it occupied the Golan Heights in 1973, and yet Israel has bombed Damascus dozens of times and the army that they are crying over did not respond. The head butcher said that he would respond at the appropriate time, which never came.

The only logical explanation is that the Assad regime leaked details of the locations of the weapons stores and factories.

The revolutionaries who liberated Syria now stand accused of working for the Zionist entity. If this were true, then why is the occupation regime afraid that the Syrian army’s weapons will fall into the new government’s hands?

The whole world knows that Assad Senior sold the Golan Heights to the Zionists for financial and political support after he was appointed as president of Syria in 1970. King Faisal of Saudi Arabia (1906-1964) told him this at an Arab Summit meeting, so not a single bullet has been fired at him since Israel occupied the Golan.

Whoever believes that the fall of the butcher Bashar Al-Assad’s regime is a loss for the Palestinian cause is, therefore, delusional. This useless regime was doing its duty by guarding the nominal borders of the apartheid state. It was the occupation’s guard dog, appointed by the occupation to do its dirty work. Palestine wouldn’t have been liberated while Syria was run by Assad and thus held captive by the Zionist entity. That is why I am optimistic about the liberation of Syria and that the future will witness more successes that will restore the freedom and dignity of the Arab people. This is the only thing that will pave the way for the return of Palestine to its people. I have said it many times: Palestine will not be liberated unless and until the Arab countries are liberated from their tyrannical and oppressive rulers.

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Independent Press.

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