Members of former deposed Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's army and security forces queued outside a building in Damascus on Saturday (December 21) to hand over their weapons and begin settlement procedures under the supervision of members of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), now the de facto ruling authority.The men and women also returned state-issued valuables, and other items as part of a reconciliation process aimed at reintegrating Assad's forces in the new Syria. Participants received temporary cards valid for three months while their status is reviewed.Lieutenant Colonel Walid Abdul Rabo told Reuters that those without criminal charges would be allowed to resume normal civilian life."The future is subject to the leadership’s decision, of course, for those who did not shed our blood, will live a normal life, like any citizen, but those who who are legally liable and those who have cases, this is of course with the judiciary and the competent courts," he said.Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family's decades-long rule.The rebel sweep ended a war that killed hundreds of thousands, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble, countryside depopulated and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.The lightning offensive raised questions over whether the rebels will be able to ensure an orderly transition.Forces under the command of Ahmed al-Sharaa - better known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani - installed a three-month caretaker government that had been ruling a rebel enclave in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib. n18oc_world n18oc_crux
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