Syria’s ruling Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the freshly self-appointed “President” of Syria Ahmad al-Sharaa (or Abu Mohammad al-Jolani), have demanded that Russia hand over ousted leader Bashar al-Assad. Syrian HTS officials are also demanding “compensation” from Moscow after it sent its military forces in support of Assad since 2015. Russia is being asked to help with “reconstruction and recovery” following 13-years of war. Sharaa’s Islamist government wants Russia to rebuild trust through “concrete measures such as compensation, reconstruction and recovery.” All of this was conveyed in a meeting which took place this week between HTS and a Russian delegation in Damascus, which was a first since Assad fled on December 8. Russia quickly granted Assad and his family asylum, but he hasn’t been seen or photographed since. It’s widely been reported that he is in Moscow, and many rumors have persisted – such as that he was supposedly poisoned – but none have proved true. Of course, Russia is very unlikely to send Assad back to Syria; however, the Kremlin does have a strategic interest in keeping its naval and air bases on Syria’s Mediterranean coast. Military equipment has been largely packed up and moved elsewhere over the past weeks. The status of the Tartous naval […]