Idlib’s civil society and governance structures are threatened by the potential resurgence of conflict, which has been kept at bay via a tenuous ceasefire negotiated in September 2018, the deterioration of which may result in humanitarian disaster and give rise to a new wave of jihadist activity.
By furthering an all-encompassing definition of terrorism, the Syrian regime equips itself with a legal tool that can be interpreted broadly as criminalizing not only horrific acts of terrorism but also peaceful human rights activity and dissent.