Syrian foreign minister vows to back women’s rights after outcry

Syria’s new Foreign Minister Assaad al-Shibani is seeking to calm an outcry sparked by comments from the country’s newly appointed head of women’s affairs, who said that women should “not go beyond the priorities of their God-given nature,” and should know “their educational role in the family.”

Posting on X, Shibani says that authorities will “stand by” women and “fully support their rights.”

“We believe in the active role of women within society, and we have confidence in their capacities,” he says, adding that “Syrian women fought long years for a free homeland that preserves their dignity and status.”

Speaking to Turkey’s state-run TRT broadcaster, Aisha al-Dibs, the only woman so far in Syria’s transitional government, said only feminist organizations that “support the model that we are going to build” would be welcome in Syria, adding “I am not going to open the path for those who don’t agree with my thinking.”

“Why adopt a lay or civil model? We want to implement a model that is right for Syrian society, and Syrian women will make it happen,” she said.

Dibs’s remarks have prompted outrage among some on social media.

Actress Aliaa Saeid says on social network X that “we were imprisoned so that we could [obtain the right] to express our opinion.”

“We have been displaced, our homes have been destroyed, so that in the end you come and tell us what’s allowed and what’s not?” she adds.