Syrians gather in the heart of Damascus on Dec. 9, 2024, to celebrate the fall of the Assad regime. Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto via Getty Images) Rami Alsayed/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Syrians, in a triumph of hope, turn the page on the horrors of Assad

The Syrian revolution is profoundly significant to those who suffered suffocating repression, surveillance and everyday indignities under a brutal dictator.
A Syrian refugee child sits on the window of his family’s trailer home painted by refugee artists in a camp near Mafraq, Jordan. AP/Raad Adayleh

5 ways the Syrian revolution continues

The revolution begun by Syrians exactly eight years ago has been won – by the murderous leader they rebelled against. But the struggle for freedom, dignity and justice Syrians launched is not over.
Syrian anti-government protesters march as part of an uprising against the country’s authoritarian regime, in Banias, Syria, April 17, 2011. The Arabic banner at center reads: ‘All of us would die for our country.’ AP/Anonymous

How the Syrian uprising began and why it matters

On the eighth anniversary of the Syrian uprising, scholar Wendy Pearlman writes about the people who risked their lives and raised their voices to fight the oppressive rule of Bashar al-Assad.

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