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Reposted

Steven Heydemann @stevenhyde.bsky.social · Jul 25

Thread.
The Reuters' investigation into the massive wealth accumulation of al-Sharaa and his inner circle is important, but this take on a sovereign wealth fund is off. A country with Syria's urgent needs requires a reconstruction fund, not an SWF.

syrianobserver.com/syrian-actor...

A Scandal Shakes the Throne of Damascus’ New Ruler: “Give Them a Chance”? - The Syrian Observer

An investigation exposes how Sharaa’s inner trio—Hazem, the Australian, and Zurba—took control of 80% of the financial empire once owned by Mohammad Hamsho and Yasar Ibrahim in exchange for legal immu...

syrianobserver.com

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AOC, un quotidien d'idées @aoc-media.bsky.social · Jul 24

À la notable exception de la matinale de France Inter – avec les 80 secondes de Nicolas Demorand – aucun média ne s’est fait l’écho du nouveau numéro du magazine papier d’AOC consacré au « Fascisme 2.0 ». Nous comptons sur vous pour le faire connaître. C’est décisif. aoc.media/produit/maga...

Magazine #2 - Fascisme 2.0Été 2025 - AOC media - Analyse Opinion Critique

Magazine #2 - Fascisme 2.0Été 2025 sur AOC.

aoc.media

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 22

Mon entretien avec The Conversation concernant les violences à Suwayda theconversation.com/au-sud-de-la...

Au sud de la Syrie, les affrontements entre les Druzes et les Bédouins ravivent le spectre des divisions communautaires

Des combats font rage entre la communauté druze et bédouine au sud de la Syrie, ravivant les pires traumatises de la guerre civile.

theconversation.com

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 21

Very interesting report by Gregory Waters with a wealth of first-and information carnegieendowment.org/research/202...

Local Governance in Post-Assad Syria: A Hybrid State Model for the Future?

Damascus is increasingly adopting a system of rule that combines centralized and localized forms of administration and security maintenance, an approach that seems suited to the needs of a country fra...

carnegieendowment.org

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Aron Lund @aronlund.bsky.social · Jul 16

In Syria, it's Trump vs. Trump: Will he be remembered as the man who gave Syria “a chance at greatness” or as the man who thwarted its post-Assad transition?

👉 Read my latest for @foreignpolicy.com!

foreignpolicy.com/2025/07/16/t...

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Clément Plaisant @cplaisant.bsky.social · Jul 17

"Turkish officials told Middle East Eye they had no desire to risk a direct confrontation with Israel in Syria or turn it into another battleground, especially after 13 years of civil war.

They also worry that such tensions would poison the efforts to reconstruct Syria as a state"

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QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 17

S. #Syria: mosques in Lajat (important tribal area in #Daraa province) called for mobilization following the retaliations against the Bedouins in #Suwayda.

Tribes from other parts of Syria are also mobilizing.

Clashes between tribal & Druze fighters also reported in different areas in Suwayda.

QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 17

#Syria: gruesome videos have started to circulate.

Bedouins in Suwayda countryside are being hunted by some Druze fighters, with cases of torture and field executions.

QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 17

S. #Syria: Druze factions took control of the city of #Suwayda after Goverment forces left.

Video: inside the Governorate building.

They are also spreading in the W. countryside, prompting Bedouins to move due to retaliations.

Druze factions also raiding buildings belonging to Balous (pro-gov.).

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QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 17

S. #Syria: an example of the current situation unfolding in #Suwayda province and the settling of scores: a fighter, reportedly affiliated with Hijri, broke the tomb of Wahid al-Balous, the founder of the "Men of Dignity Movement" and father of pro-government figure Laith al-Balous.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 16

When Israel killed Hassan Nasrallah last year, Palestinian Islamist Hudhayfa 'Azzam warned the Syrian rebels: instead of celebrating, you should start digging tunnels now, he told them, because you're next. I didn't think it would take less than a year for this forecast to prove correct.

QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 16

Unbelievable. The Defense Ministry in heart of #Damascus under wave of israeli airstrikes.

It's unprecedented, even under Assad Regime no Ministry was ever bombed.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 16

Al-Shara probably made his first major error by launching a full-scale attack on Suwayda. He did so because he apparently overestimated US ability to rein in Israel. He thought he could make yet another successful poker move when in fact he should have continued to play chess with al-Hijri.

QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 16

Despite US request, Israel carried out several airstrikes last night in Daraa & Suwayda provinces.

The Israeli Defense minister threatened today to strike with more force if Government troops don't withdraw from Suwayda.

QalaatAlMudiq @qalaatalmudiq.bsky.social · Jul 15

In an unexpected move, the Trump administration officially asked Israel to stop its airstrikes on the Syrian government - US official source.

Israel stated that the airstrikes would cease tonight.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 16

Mes commentaires sur la situation à Soueïda pour RFI www.rfi.fr/fr/podcasts/...

Invité international - Frappes israéliennes à Soueïda: «On serait peut-être au début d'une bataille de longue haleine»

Violences meurtrières entre combattants druzes et bédouins depuis deux jours à Soueïda. L'aviation israélienne a bombardé ce mardi 15 juillet les forces gouvernementales syriennes après leur entrée da...

https://www.rfi.fr/fr/podcasts/invité-international/20250715-frappes-israéliennes-à-soueïda-on-serait-peut-être-au-début-d-une-bataille-de-longue-haleine

thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 7

But would that fundamentally change Syria's position on the Golan? Damascus would simply claim that Shebaa is part of the occupied Golan, that's it. More difficult in Lebanon, as you explain.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 7

Would that work as well if the Syrian government formally claimed sovereignty over Shebaa farms (which to my knowledge it has never done)? If the Lebanese government agrees then officially, there are no occupied Lebanese territories any more.

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Reposted

Matthew J Kuiper @matthewjkuiper.bsky.social · Jul 3

Televangelism as a phenomenon/ genre is often thought of as exclusively Christian (Prot, oft Pentecostal). Cf. the reporting on the recent passing of Jimmy Swaggart - crazy coincidence that my post came out the same day. But it’s been a growing trend across religions, including Islam, for decades.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 3

One more thought: given how much power is personalized in the new Syrian regime, the president's own class background probably matters a lot as well.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 3

Even after Dec 2024, dependence on the global capitalist system is not the whole picture: alliance with the urban bourgeoisie for purpose of regime stabilization should also be factored in.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jul 3

This is an interesting piece, but I think the authors underestimate the depth of the new Syrian leaders' adhesion to neoliberal economics, which was already patent when they were ruling over Idlib.

Muftah Magazine @muftah.org · Jul 1

Is the new Syrian state revolutionary?

In Muftah Magazine's new issue, @alarian.muftah.org &
@mesbushra.muftah.org argue that while post-Assad Syria seemed, in theory, a blank canvas for revolutionary change, its inherited conditions narrowed the horizon of possibility.

Is the New Syrian State Revolutionary?

Post-Assad Syria was, in theory, a blank canvas for revolutionary transformation—in reality, its leaders inherited conditions that narrowed the horizon of possibility before the first stroke was made.

www.muftah.org

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 29

Thanks a lot!

Reposted

Sam Heller | سام هيلر @abujamajem.com · Jun 27

Haaretz team interviews Israeli soldiers and officers who describe Israeli army's live-fire crowd control methods – including with grenades, mortars, and artillery fire – regularly killing and wounding desperate Gazans approaching food distribution points: www.haaretz.com/israel-news/...

IDF soldiers ordered to shoot deliberately at unarmed Gazans waiting for humanitarian aid

***

www.haaretz.com

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 27

I'm not saying they want. My point is that when things go south in the region (and the often do), guns are more important than money.

thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 27

Saudi-Syrian dynamics in post-civil war Lebanon are a good illustration of the limits of a regional strategy based on money alone

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 27

I think the latter take overestimates the "leadership" of Gulf states. They've never been able to project military power in the part of the Middle East that matters most to Turkey (Syria/Iraq).

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 23

Je suis d'accord. Je pense juste que "prêcher les convaincus" n'est pas une perte de temps et que ça doit sans doute même être une priorité.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 23

Je n'ai jamais dit l'inverse. Mon propos est que ce n'est pas à eux que sont destinés les écrits théoriques sur les différentes formes de domination.

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thomaspierret.bsky.social @thomaspierret.bsky.social · Jun 23

Évidemment mais il ne faut pas trop compter sur la force des arguments rationnels pour empêcher ça.