San Francisco Frontiers - Syria's first flight since Assad's fall takes off

Assad fled Syria following a lightning offensive spearheaded by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), more than 13 years after his crackdown on democracy protests precipitated one of the deadliest wars of the century.

He left behind a country scarred by decades of torture, disappearances and summary executions, and the collapse of his rule on December 8 stunned the world and sparked celebrations around Syria and beyond.

The country's new rulers have sought to keep its institutions going and, on Wednesday, 43 people were aboard the flight from Damascus to Aleppo, the first since Assad was toppled and fled to Russia.

Earlier this week, airport staff painted the three-star independence flag on planes, a symbol of the 2011 uprising now adopted by the transitional authorities.

In the terminal, the new flag also replaced the one linked to Assad's era.

The joy sparked by Assad's departure has not put an end to the woes of a country wracked by years of civil war and which has become heavily dependent on aid.

Rooted in Syria's branch of Al-Qaeda and proscribed as a terrorist organisation by several Western governments, HTS has sought to moderate its rhetoric by assuring protection for the country's many religious and ethnic minorities.

- 'We want to know' -

The military chief of the victorious HTS said it would be "the first" to dissolve its armed wing and integrate into the armed forces, after the leader of the group ordered the disbanding of rebel organisations.

"In any state, all military units must be integrated into this institution," Murhaf Abu Qasra, known by his nom de guerre Abu Hassan al-Hamawi, said in an interview with AFP.

"We will be, God willing, among the first to take the initiative (to dissolve our armed wing)," he said.

HTS has also vowed justice for the crimes committed under Assad's rule, including the disappearance of tens of thousands of people into the complex web of detention centres and prisons that was used for decades to silence dissent.

"We want to know where our children are, our brothers," said 55-year-old Ziad Alaywi, standing by a ditch near the town of Najha, southeast of Damascus.

It is one of the locations where Syrians believe the bodies of prisoners tortured to death were buried -- acts that international organisations say could constitute crimes against humanity.

"Were they killed? Are they buried here?" he asked.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor, more than 100,000 people died or were killed in custody from 2011.

The country's new rulers have stepped up engagement with countries that had long seen Assad as a pariah, and with international institutions.

EU chief Ursula Von der Leyen said the bloc would intensify its "direct engagement" with the new administration.

Britain, France and Germany have sent delegations to Damascus, while Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Rome was "ready to engage with the new Syrian leadership", but urged "maximum caution".

- 'Syrian-led' -

Members of the UN Security Council, which includes Assad ally Russia as well as the United States, called on Tuesday for an "inclusive and Syrian-led" political process.

"This political process should meet the legitimate aspirations of all Syrians, protect all of them and enable them to peacefully, independently and democratically determine their own futures," a statement said.

It also "underlined the need for Syria and its neighbours to mutually refrain from any action... that could undermine each other's security".

Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on Syrian military assets since Assad's overthrow in what it says is a bid to prevent them falling into hostile hands.

Israeli troops also occupied strategic positions in a UN-patrolled buffer zone in a move UN chief Antonio Guterres described as a breach of the 1974 armistice.

The United Nations' special envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, warned Tuesday that the country's protracted conflict "has not ended yet".

He said he was concerned about reports of escalation between US-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Turkish-backed groups who have captured several Kurdish towns in recent weeks.

The United States later announced it had brokered an extension to the ceasefire in the flashpoint town of Manbij and was seeking a broader understanding with Turkey.

The leader of the SDF proposed a "demilitarised zone" in the northern town of Kobane, also known as Ain al-Arab.

Speaking to AFP, Abu Qasra, the HTS military chief, said Kurdish-held areas would be integrated under the country's new leadership, adding that the group rejects federalism.

Kurdish-held areas of Syria would be integrated under the country's new leadership, adding that the group rejects federalism and that "Syria will not be divided".

"The Kurdish people are one of the components of the Syrian people... Syria will not be divided and there will be no federal entities," he said.

E.Walker--SFF