People in Syria and those across the world have taken to the streets to celebrate the end of dictator Bashar Al Assad’s brutal regime, raising an alternative version of the country’s official flag.
Assad was toppled after rebel forces launched a shock offensive, sweeping through Syria and gaining control of the country’s major cities in just 12 days.
The former leader has now fled to Moscow where he has been granted asylum while an interim government is established by rebel group Hayat Tahrir al Sham.
For many Syrians who have been caught up in over a decade of civil war, his departure signals a new dawn, marked by a new national flag – which has been raised over embassies, painted on faces, hung from bridges and waved jubilantly in cities across the world.
Why are the rebels using a different flag?
How is it different to the previous flag?
Under Assad, Syria’s flag featured horizontal red, white and black stripes, with two green stars across the central white stripe.
The new design replaces the red stripe with a green one and features three red stars along the white stripe. It is the official flag of the Syrian rebels.
Where did it come from?
The national flag of Syria has subtly changed throughout history, with different versions representing political and geographical shifts.
Since the country became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1918, there have been nine different versions of the national flag. The colours – white, green, red and black – are one aspect that has stayed consistent.
The design brought in by the rebels this week was first developed in the 1930s, during the French mandate. It was used by Syrian revolutionaries, and symbolised the desire for independence.
It later became the national flag when Syria became independent in 1946.
It was then replaced in 1958 by the flag of the United Arab Republic, with two stars representing political union between Egypt and Syria.
This design was changed a few times before making a comeback in 1980. It remained Syria’s national flag – until now.
What do the stars and colours represent?
The four colours have historical Islamic significance. White represents the Umayyad empire and red symbolises an Islamic movement known as Khawarij.
Black is believed to represent the Prophet Muhammed while the caliph Ali, his cousin, is depicted by the colour green.
However, the colours came to mean different things in the context of the struggle of independence in the 1930s and 40s.
Black stood for the dark past of oppression, white represented hope for the future and red symbolised the blood sacrificed to achieve that future.
Why are the rebels using it?
The three-star flag design was brought back into use by the Free Syrian Army, a rebel group which formed in 2011 to oppose Assad’s regime.
Given its connection to Syria’s fight for independence from France, it has been used to represent freedom for the Syrian people.
Source: ITV
