STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
One of the basic things this network does is to bring you along as we go see the news for ourselves. And we're about to glimpse life in the streets of Damascus. Syrian rebels are putting together a new transitional government after driving out President Bashar al-Assad, and the new prime minister is promising an inclusive government. So what does that mean in practice? NPR's Hadeel Al-Shalchi arrived in Damascus yesterday and is on the line. Welcome.
HADEEL AL-SHALCHI, BYLINE: Thank you.
INSKEEP: What have you seen and heard?
AL-SHALCHI: It's actually kind of calm driving into Damascus and, you know, walking around a little bit. Stores and restaurants are open. The traffic was snarled. Later, we heard that a curfew had been lifted citywide. There are still some signs of celebrations, even. I saw a number of women carrying the new Syrian flag, you know, just waving them as they walked down the street. In a small square in the center of town, there was a group of people firing guns in the air in celebration and singing.
But, you know, that uncertainty you mentioned is still very real. So far, the group in charge, Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, has promised they will restore order. But anger and revenge is still very palpable here. You know, there have been many videos circulating online of revenge attacks and summary executions. NPR couldn't verify them independently. But one video that has gone viral shows Syrians digging up the tomb of Hafez al-Assad, Bashar al-Assad's father, who ruled Syria before his son. And the video shows it just engulfed in flames after the rebels said it was for revenge.
INSKEEP: Wow. And when you think about revenge, you think about people who supported the old regime, but you also think about the wide variety of ethnic and religious groups that make up Syria. Are some Syrians fearful?
AL-SHALCHI: Absolutely. And it's possible to say that minorities in particular, like you said, are apprehensive about their future and how their new leaders will treat them. For example, I spoke to an engineer, Samra Kassab (ph), from the Druze community, who lives here in Damascus. He said that there are still some - there are some fears in his community that they won't be treated well. He said that while HTS has assured their safety, he worries that the new rulers will become actually Islamist extremists, and they might go after his community.
INSKEEP: Oh, well, when people hear that here, they think of what happened in Afghanistan a couple of years ago. But this is a different country, so is that fear real - founded in reality?
AL-SHALCHI: I mean, yeah. HTS was affiliated with al-Qaida before breaking off from them years ago. And the group's head, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, is considered a terrorist by the U.S. with a $10 million bounty on his head. And then the prime minister, Mohammed al-Bashir, held a press conference, and right next to him were two flags. One was the new Syrian flag, and the other was a flag affiliated with some Islamist groups. There was an outcry online by Syrian pluralists. And the next time Bashir made an appearance, the flag was gone. And Kassab did tell me that he was hopeful that the international community is talking a lot about Syrian minorities, and he hopes that'll put pressure on HTS to respect them.
INSKEEP: When it gets this tense, is it hard to understand just basically what's going on in Damascus?
AL-SHALCHI: I mean, absolutely. For example, yesterday, journalists were told that there was going to be a public execution in Damascus of a former regime leader. Sure, you know, that's really gruesome, but it's an important story for us to cover.
INSKEEP: Yeah.
AL-SHALCHI: And people were super sure that it was going to happen, and a huge crowd actually amassed to watch. But then our NPR team arrived, and there was absolutely nothing. It turned out to just, you know, be unfounded. So that just shows you how difficult it is to really get information out of here. And then also, there's a lot of confusion about how to get order into the country and also families together.
INSKEEP: NPR's Hadeel Al-Shalchi is part of NPR's team in Damascus and elsewhere in Syria. In fact, our colleague, Leila Fadel, is in Damascus. We're hearing with - hearing from her elsewhere in today's program. Hadeel, thanks so much for your reporting - really appreciate it.
AL-SHALCHI: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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