The leader of the new Syrian administration, Ahmad Al Shara’a (better known as Abu Mohammad Al Jolani) spoke to 5Pillars and other Western media in Damascus yesterday and outlined his thoughts on several burning issues including Israel, pro-rebel foreign fighters, the new Syria and its relationship with the wider Ummah.
Al Jolani, who spearheaded the rebel offensive which recently toppled Bashar Al Assad, met with Dilly Hussain in an hour-long, closed door press briefing alongside the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Al Jazeera, TRT and France 24.
Dilly Hussain asked Abu Mohammad Al Jolani the following questions:
QUESTION: Since Assad was toppled, Israel has invaded Syrian land and conducted 100s of air strikes against Syrian military facilities. What is your position on Israel’s ongoing aggression?
ANSWER: Abu Mohammad Al Jolani replied that Israel’s main argument for attacking Syria was the presence of Iranian forces and Hezbollah in the country, but now that they are no longer here there is no justification for Israel to keep attacking.
He appealed to the United Nations and the international community to ensure that Israel abides by international law, and assured the journalists that the new Syria does not want to go to war with Israel because its main priority is to unify the Syrian people, to strengthen its institutions, to build infrastructure and to begin a process of national unification.
He added that Syria would no longer be used as a base to attack Israel or any other nation.
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QUESTION: What will be the status of foreign fighters who took part in the Syrian revolution and have been present in Syria for many years?
ANSWER: Abu Mohammad Al Jolani replied that they were part of the movement that led to the downfall of Assad and should be celebrated. He added that the number of foreign fighters in Syria has been exaggerated because no one has a clear record of how many there are.
However, considering that people who have been in another country for around 4-7 years get citizenship it shouldn’t be beyond the realms of possibility that they could be integrated into Syrian society because they believe in the same ideology and values as the Syrians.
QUESTION: What will the new constitution of Syria be based on?
ANSWER: Abu Mohammad Al Jolani replied that every country has its moral basis which is grounded in its constitution and the new constitution of Syria will reflect the values, the culture and the beliefs of the Syrian people. It will not be a constitution that is alien to the Syrian people.
QUESTION: What did you mean when you said in your victory speech in the Umayyad Mosque that the toppling of Bashar Al Assad was a victory for the Ummah?
ANSWER: Abu Mohammad Al Jolani replied that it is a victory because of what Syria means to the Muslim Ummah and how much care and concern they have for Syria. He also mentioned that lots of money was raised for the cause by Muslims outside of Syria, as well as those who came to Syria to help the people when they were being attacked by the Assad regime. However, he added that they are no plans to spread the revolution beyond Syria.
