Thousands of people have poured into the streets of Syria’s central city of Hama to mark one year since forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad were expelled days before the longtime ruler’s ouster.The atmosphere in the city – long a stronghold of opposition to al-Assad – is one of “hope and belief” in Syria’s future, reported Al Jazeera’s Assed Baig from Hama’s al-Assi Square.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list“As far as I can see on balconies on roofs, people are out celebrating this day,” said Baig. “They’re waving flags, they’re chanting slogans, they’re singing, and there’s hope for the future.”On December 5, 2024, rebels led by Syria’s now-President Ahmed al-Sharaa took control of Hama, marking their second breakthrough in a lightning offensive towards the capital. Days later, they captured Damascus, ending al-Assad’s 24-year reign and his family’s dynasty, as he fled to Russia.Al-Assad’s fall carries particular weight in Hama, which in 1982 suffered a brutal crackdown under his father, former President Hafez al-Assad.In quelling an uprising there, government forces besieged and bombed the city, while rounding up and shooting young men and boys. The Syrian Network for Human Rights estimates that between 30,000 and 40,000 people, including entire families, were killed.‘People are joyous’Baig said today’s atmosphere in Hama is markedly different from when he last visited two decades ago.“Back then, people would whisper, there was a sense of fear that the wrong word, the wrong sentence, could cause you to end up in trouble, disappeared to the regime forces’ prison or maybe even worse,” he s …
