Syria conference a ‘rare historical opportunity’ to rebuild country

Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, leaves the podium after speaking during Syria’s national dialogue conference at the People’s Palace in Damascus (Omar Albam/AP)

Syria’s new rulers kicked off a long-awaited national dialogue conference on Tuesday as a “rare historical opportunity” to rebuild the country after the fall of former president Bashar Assad and nearly 14 years of civil war.

About 600 people from across Syria were invited to the gathering in the presidential palace in Damascus, hosted by the new authorities led by the Islamist former insurgent group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS. The group led the offensive that ousted Mr Assad in December.