Syrian prime minister says government still functioning. U.N. official says not quite

DAMASCUS, Syria —  Syria’s prime minister said Monday that most Cabinet ministers were still at work after rebels overthrew President Bashar Assad.

Prime Minister Mohammed Ghazi al-Jalali, who remained in his post after Assad and most of his top officials fled over the weekend, has sought to project normality.

“We are working so that the transitional period is quick and smooth,” he told Sky News Arabia TV on Monday, saying the security situation had already improved from the day before.

He said that the government is coordinating with the insurgents, and that he is ready to meet rebel leader Ahmed Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who made a triumphal appearance Sunday at a famed Damascus mosque.

Despite the prime minister’s assurances, some state workers failed to return to their jobs and a United Nations official said the government remains paralyzed.

The public sector “has just come to a complete and abrupt halt,” said U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria Adam Abdelmoula, noting, for example, that an aid flight carrying urgently needed medical supplies had been put on hold after aviation employees abandoned their jobs.

“This is a country that has had one government for 53 years and then suddenly all of those who have been demonized by the public media are now in charge in the nation’s capital,” Abdelmoula told the Associated Press.

Meanwhile, streams of refugees crossed back into Syria from neighboring countries, hoping for a more peaceful future and looking for friends and relatives who disappeared during Assad’s brutal rule.

There were already signs of the difficulties ahead for the rebel alliance now in control of much of the country. The alliance is led by a former senior Al Qaeda militant who severed ties with the extremist group years ago and has promised representative government and religious tolerance.

The rebel command said Monday that it would not tell women how to dress.

“It is strictly forbidden to interfere with women’s dress or impose any request related to their clothing or appearance, including requests for modesty,” the command said in a statement on social media.

Britain and the U.S. are both considering removing the main anti-Assad rebel group from their lists of designated terrorist organizations, according to AP.

Hayat Tahrir al Sham began as an offshoot of Al Qaeda but cut ties with the group years ago and has worked to present a more moderate image.

The group’s leader “is saying some of the right things about the protection of minorities, about respecting people’s rights,” British Cabinet minister Pat McFadden said.

Removal from the terrorist list “will have to be considered quite quickly,” he said.

A Biden administration official noted that the rebel group will be an “important component” in Syria’s future and that the U.S. needs to “engage with them appropriately.”

Another administration official said the U.S. remains in a “wait-and-see” mode on whether to remove the designation.

Both officials requested anonymity to discuss the ongoing internal deliberations.

Nearly two days after rebels entered the capital, some key government services had shut down after state workers ignored calls to go back to their jobs, a U.N. official said, causing issues at airports and borders and slowing the flow of humanitarian aid.

Israel said it carried out airstrikes on suspected chemical weapons sites and long-range rockets to keep them from falling into the hands of extremists. Israel also seized a buffer zone inside Syria after Syrian troops withdrew.

In northern Syria, Turkey said allied opposition forces seized the town of Manbij from Kurdish-led forces backed by the United States, a reminder that even after Assad’s departure, the country remains split among armed groups that have fought in the past.

The Kremlin said Russia has granted political asylum to Assad, a decision made by President Vladimir Putin. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Assad’s specific whereabouts and said Putin did not plan to meet with him.

Damascus was quiet Monday, with life slowly returning to normal while most shops and public institutions were closed. In public squares, some people were still celebrating. Civilian traffic resumed, but there was no public transport. Long lines formed in front of bakeries and other food stores.

There was little sign of any security presence, and Associated Press reporters saw a few SUVs on the side of a main boulevard that appeared to have been broken into.

In some areas, small groups of armed men were stationed in the streets. A video circulating online showed a man in military fatigues holding a rifle attempting to reassure residents of the Mezzeh neighborhood in Damascus that they would not be harmed.

“We have nothing against you, neither Alawite, nor Christian, nor Shiite, nor Druze, but everyone must behave well, and no one should try to attack us,” the fighter said.

In southern Turkey, hundreds of Syrian refugees gathered Monday at two border crossings, hoping to return home.

Mustafa Sultan, at the Oncupinar crossing, said he was searching for his older brother who was imprisoned under Assad’s rule.

“I haven’t seen him for 13 years,” he said. “The prisons have been emptied so I am going to go see whether he’s alive.”

El Deeb, Mroue and Goldenberg write for the Associated Press and reported from Damascus, Beirut and Tel Aviv, respectively.