Syria Marks a Turbulent Year After Assad’s Sudden Fall

A year has passed since the gates of Saydnaya prison were forced open and a barefoot, shaken Mohammad Marwan stepped back into a world he had almost forgotten. His release on Dec. 8, 2024 came as rebel fighters closed in on Damascus and the Assad dynasty’s five-decade rule collapsed with stunning speed.

Marwan’s return to his Homs village was filled with tears and celebration. But the months that followed carried the weight of what he endured during six years of imprisonment — chest pain later traced to tuberculosis, long nights of panic and sleeplessness, and memories of beatings that greeted new arrivals inside Syria’s most notorious prison.
Today he continues treatment at a rehabilitation center in Homs and says his health is gradually improving. “We were in something like a state of death,” he said. “Now we’ve come back to life.”

A nation trying to stand again

Syria itself is attempting the same recovery. The regime’s collapse in late 2024 caught even the victorious rebel groups by surprise. A coordinated push led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in the northwest began as a defensive move to stop an anticipated government assault on Idlib. But as Russian attention stayed fixed on Ukraine and Hezbollah reeled from losses in Lebanon, Assad’s military line crumbled — first in Aleppo, then Hama and Homs.

By Dec. 8, Damascus had fallen. Assad was flown to Moscow, where he remains in exile. Russia, despite decades of backing the regime, accepted the new leadership and kept its coastal bases intact.

Since taking power, interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa has tried to reshape Syria’s global image. His visit to Washington this November — the first by any Syrian leader since independence — symbolized a shift few imagined possible even two years ago.

Fragile calm and new tensions

But Syria’s internal landscape remains fractured. Sectarian clashes after Assad’s fall killed hundreds of Alawite and Druze civilians, prompting Druze communities in Sweida to form their own autonomous administration.
In the northeast, tensions simmer between Damascus and the Kurdish-led forces despite a March agreement meant to merge their fighters under a single command.

Along the southern border, Israel has tightened its hold over the former U.N. buffer zone and continues airstrikes and ground incursions. Talks on a security arrangement have stalled.

Meanwhile, the economy struggles to rise from collapse. Western sanctions were mostly lifted, and Gulf nations have pledged reconstruction funds, yet little has translated into large-scale rebuilding. The World Bank estimates Syria will need $216 billion to repair its war-scarred cities.

Rebuilding begins one street at a time

For now, recovery is mostly driven by citizens using their own limited savings. In the devastated Yarmouk camp outside Damascus, families are returning slowly. Blasted walls are being patched, small shops reopening, and long-deserted apartments are seeing light again. But the deepest ruins still lie untouched.

Residents say expectations must be realistic. “They inherited an empty country — the banks are empty, the infrastructure was robbed,” said Etab al-Hawari, watching workers rebuild a nearby home. Her neighbor, Maher al-Homsi, said he hopes for bigger plans ahead but refuses to wait. He is repairing his house even though the neighborhood has no running water.

In the capital, dentist Bassam Dimashqi describes the atmosphere as “better, with some freedom,” but worries about security and investment. “Once you impose security, everything else will come,” he said.

For Marwan, life after Saydnaya is both brighter and harder. He finds occasional labor jobs that pay the equivalent of five dollars a day. When his tuberculosis treatment ends, he plans to leave for Lebanon in search of something steadier.

“Syria is better now,” he said quietly. “But starting again is not easy for any of us.”