Overview
- Thousands gathered in Damascus and Syrian diaspora hubs to mark the anniversary, waving the transition government’s new green‑white‑black flag.
- Interim leader Ahmad al‑Sharaa expanded international outreach with reopened embassies, a UN General Assembly address and a White House visit, coinciding with broad suspensions of Assad‑era sanctions.
- Roughly 2.9 million people have returned home, yet aid groups report more than half of water systems and four in five power networks are destroyed or nonfunctional.
- UN and EU briefings say national control remains incomplete, with clashes involving Kurdish and Druze groups, ISIS activity and Israeli strikes that UN officials warn threaten the political transition.
- Assad lives under Russian protection in Moscow with no public appearances, as Syrian authorities seek accountability and analysts describe him as leverage for the Kremlin.