There are historical moments that demand moral clarity free from political courtesy. Syria today represents one of those moments. Attempting to market Ahmad al-Sharaa as an emerging statesman is not merely an optimistic reading of events; it is a dangerous political gamble that risks recycling some of the most organized and hazardous models of extremism in the Middle East.

What is unfolding is not a political transformation, but rather a systematic whitewashing of an ideological past that has never undergone genuine revision. Instead, it has been repackaged in softer — and arguably more deceptive — political language.

An Ideological Machine in Political Clothing

The narrative surrounding al-Sharaa has not evolved into a state-building project. Rather, it has transformed into a propaganda framework designed to redefine extremism as a form of “liberation movement.” His supporters do not present a governance program or a vision for managing a pluralistic society. Instead, they reproduce a rigid and dangerous binary: loyalty or hostility.

This model strongly echoes experiences that emerged within the environment of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, where political legitimacy was constructed through ideological mobilization rather than through a social contract........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)