Peak kiwi is a chest freezer down in the laundry that’s full of homekill.

And now…we must let Syrians work this out but help them to maximize and build on the miracle of it all, address the past and grieve and reconcile society, and build build build and grow and repair and renew. I’ll expand on all these thoughts in more detail in coming days/weeks.

The regime’s primary concern was its security state, not governance or service provision. Syrians need everything. Some areas are destroyed beyond recognition. Others simply lack basic services. Institutions lack capacity. The work ahead is vast.

Many folks stayed in place, so within and between communities you’ve victims, perpetrators, and everyone else. Reductive to think of it as sectarian issue, it’s beyond that. Dynamics are highly localized. The TJ and reconciliation Q is huge—in institutions, communities, justice…

On 3/ Wow, where to start. In between the highs and the lows there is SO much going on and this is part where much of the work needs to be done. People are uncertain about what’s next and highly sensitive to every action of authorities—tho giving it a chance.

The mass graves are vast. Hospitals had morgues of tortured corpses. There are branches everywhere. The full truth is only now coming out and how to reckon with everything that happened and to avoid replicating these patterns of securitization and brutality will be a big task.

On 2/ The horror. I’ve researched the regimes security state in granular detail for years but seeing it in 3D is something else. The scale of the enterprise was outrageous. Thousands of people spent every day involved in this. So many were detained or had someone missing.

The miracle of what’s happening is mind-bending. It shouldn’t be possible. It’s a credit to the backroom diplomacy and the restraint and willingness of Syrians to give this chance. Sure, there is some instability and it’s early days, but the fact it’s working so far is huge.

On 1/ The joy and relief are real, even among those who are afraid or uncertain. The regime was widely hated. Under them, things were only going one way, and it wasn’t good. Now, there is a question, possibility, opportunity. People have a huge weight lifted.

Joy, hope, and opportunity abound. The grief, horror, and awful truths are almost too much to bear. The miracle and uncertainty of the moment are in constant and palpable tension with each other. There is so much going on at once and so much work to do. But the relief…

You clearly don’t know my work.

You don’t seem to be looking at the same locally led positives as I am. I am talking far beyond any armed group.