Francois Zankih was forced to flee Syria in 2020 after Hayʼat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) twice kidnapped him and eventually issued a death notice against him. Despite this, the human rights campaigner says HTS has ‘changed their behaviour’ towards minorities. He added LGBT Syrians are jubilant following the downfall of Assad, who he described as the ‘biggest source of violence’ against them. Anti-LGBT laws and extreme homophobia across large parts of Syrian society mean, however, gay and transgender Syrians are still ‘in crisis’ and worried about the prospect of persecution if they were ever to return.