When Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) stormed into town, Yehiya Sobieh rounded up as many people as he could to start a protest. On June 9, the people of Maarat al-Numan, a small city located in Syria’s last rebel-held stronghold of Idlib, mobilized to protect local fighters from the al-Qaeda-linked group.
Many chanted “Shabiha, Shabiha, leave our city now,” which is a term that originally referred to state-sponsored gangs that terrorized protesters at the beginning of the Syrian revolution. That day, demonstrators held their ground until HTS retreated, signaling a clear victory for civil society.
