A New Syria Emerges After 13 Years Of Civil War And Decades Of Dictatorship

HOMS, SYRIA - JANUARY 20: People enjoy an afternoon in a park above the city of Homs on January 20, 2025 in Homs, Syria.Homs, the country’s third-largest city, has a mixed population of Sunni and Shia Muslims, Alawites and Christians and was once called the Capital of the Revolution' and was heavily damaged in fighting over the years. Following the overthrow of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad by opposition groups in a quick offensive on December 8, the country is looking to gain economic momentum after years of global sanctions on the Assad-led government. Arab and Western countries have been reopening diplomatic relations with Syria's new de facto authorities, headed by the Islamist former insurgent group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS. Fourteen years of war have left the Syrian economy damaged, with tens of thousands of residents living on or below the poverty line. The World Food Program estimates that 13.1 million Syrians do not have enough to eat. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)