Idlib: Redeeming the homeland has a high price

By Mohammad Karkas

In the midst of recent events, #Idlib is at the forefront of the Syrian scene as the safest and most stable area, despite the ongoing threats it faces. In conjunction with the systematic attacks launched by the remnants of the Assad regime on Thursday night on the Syrian coastal areas, which claimed the lives of about 15 young men from the Internal Security Forces and the Ministry of Defense, most of them from Idlib, this region has emerged once again as a center of national cohesion, far from sectarian calculations or regional divisions.

With the remnants of the Assad regime temporarily controlling some sites in Jableh and Latakia, and cutting off the international highway "M4", Idlib was the first to move in support of the security and defense forces, not out of sectarian alignment, but based on a national vision that seeks to preserve a unified Syria, not torn between mini-states and divisions.

Although most of the martyrs who have been killed since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2025 were from Idlib, this did not translate into retaliatory or sectarian reactions. On the contrary, the deployment of security and military forces aimed to protect the coastal population of all affiliations, in a position that confirms that Idlib is not an area of ​​isolation or closure, but rather an extension of the true Syrian spirit.

Idlib: The wound of the revolution and its banner

Idlib was not just a geographical area, but was and still is the heart and pulse of the Syrian revolution. It is the land that embraced the dreams of Syrians for freedom and dignity, and made sacrifices after sacrifices without waiting for reward or recognition. Despite all of this, after the fall of the deposed regime, it disappeared from the spotlight, and found no one to console it in its destruction and wounds or to stand by its people exhausted by the brutality of the regime that continued for 14 years with the most heinous tools of killing and destruction, from explosive barrels to chemical weapons and internationally banned bombs.

Despite what Idlib has faced, it was not given the opportunity to be part of the new Syria that the revolutionaries dreamed of. Rather, it was stripped of its sacrifices and portrayed as a haven for monsters, in a systematic distortion that hides the true extent of its people’s suffering.

Idlib between destruction and steadfastness

Idlib is still paying the price today, as Assad’s missiles have not stopped killing its people, not only through direct shelling, but also through the remnants of war and mines planted by the regime and its militias throughout the years of conflict. Hundreds of villages and areas are still uninhabitable, and thousands of families are prevented from returning to their homes and lands because of the death that lurks beneath the ground. Even the olive trees, which were a symbol of the lives of the people of Idlib, were not spared from destruction, as they were brutally uprooted, depriving its people of their livelihood and their historical connection to the land.

Nevertheless, Idlib remains steadfas, great despite the wounds, strong despite the pain, and compassionate despite the cruelty it has experienced. Idlib will remain the Syria we believe in, the Syria that has not abandoned its revolution, nor compromised on its unity, the Syria that bleeds but refuses to be broken.