The American journalist Theo Padnos was captured in 2012 by Syria’s new rulers, the Islamist militia Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (then known as Jabhat al-Nusra). His captivity lasted two years. Given his experiences with the group, he holds little optimism for Syria’s future. “The recent events bode ill for everyone. Unfortunately, eight years of life in Syria’s Idlib province—where the Jabhat al-Nusra army has endured since its expulsion from Aleppo in 2016, sometimes starving, sometimes cowering under bombs, yet never neglecting the five daily prayers or obligatory fasting—do not inspire young men to take an interest in the details of communal administration in a troubled country. Eight years under such conditions ignite a longing for revenge. These conditions create deep, humiliating poverty. They drive people to turn increasingly to the Quran.” More here…
