From fighters to policemen in a post-Assad Damascus

Until recently, these men were at war with the Syrian government. Now, they are manning checkpoints across the capital. They are former fighters of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS The Islamist group, once an al-Qaeda affiliate, overthrew the government of Bashar al-Assad in early December. After 13 years of civil war, restoring security is one of the top priorities for HTS. The group has installed the likes of Basilia al-Helal, a former rebel, as police chief in Damascus. Militants who turned on the police now control traffic and are trying to return property looted during the recent government overthrow. They also say their mission is to conduct raids to arrest drug dealers, thieves and former government officials. Before ousting al-Assad, HTS ran a local government in a part of northern Syria it controlled. There, he was accused of rights violations, including jailing critics. This has worried some. They worry about how HTS will govern now that it controls a much larger and more diverse part of the country. These HTS fighters say the concerns about them are misplaced.