Syria's national dialogue conference begins as the battered country seeks to rebuild

“What we are experiencing today is an exceptional and rare historical opportunity in which we must use every moment to serve the interests of our people and our nation and honor the sacrifices of its children,” he said.

Syria's new rulers have promised an inclusive political transition. They will be closely watched by Syrians and the international community, including countries weighing whether to lift sanctions imposed during Assad's authoritarian rule.

Syria faces major challenges, from rebuilding an economy and war-wrecked infrastructure to setting up a new constitution and justice mechanisms for those accused of war crimes.

Although incidents of revenge and collective punishment have been far less widespread than expected, many in Syria's minority communities — including Kurds, Christians, Druze and members of Assad's Alawite sect — are concerned for their future and not convinced by promises of inclusive governance.

HTS was formerly affiliated with al-Qaida, although it broke ties, and al-Sharaa has since preached coexistence.

The organizers of the Damascus conference said that all of Syria's communities were invited. Women and members of minority religious communities were among the attendees.

The gathering is meant to come up with nonbinding recommendations on the country's interim rules before drafting a new constitution and forming a new government.

Syria's new leaders also face the challenge of transforming former insurgent factions into a single national army they say should control all of the country's territory. Some armed groups — mainly the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which holds sway in northeastern Syria — have refused to disarm and dissolve their units.

SDF figures weren't invited to the conference, although the organizers said the Kurdish community would be represented.

A group of mostly Kurdish political parties said in a statement on Tuesday that the conference did “not reflect the reality of the Syrian components” and warned that it would be “meaningless, worthless and ineffective and will not contribute to finding real solutions to the crisis that the country is suffering from.”

Along with the internal frictions, Syria's new authorities face external threats.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel won't allow Syria's new army or HTS to "enter the area south of Damascus." He said that Israel aimed to protect Syria's Druze, a religious minority who live in southern Syria and in Israel's Golan Heights.

After Assad's fall, Israeli forces moved into territory in southern Syria adjacent to the Israel-annexed Golan Heights and have made clear they plan to stay indefinitely.

Syria's new rulers haven't directly responded to Netanyahu's warning, but al-Sharaa told the Damascus conference that Syria must “firmly confront anyone who wants to tamper with our security and unity.”

Interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani said that Syria's new authorities "will not accept any violation of our sovereignty or the independence of our national decisions.” He also touted the government's efforts to rebuild diplomatic ties with Arab and Western countries, and push for lifting sanctions.

Also on Tuesday, hundreds of demonstrators gathered in the Druze heartland of Sweida and the southern city of Daraa to protest against Netanyahu's comments.

Nour Alameddine, a university student, displayed a sign: “Syria is not for sale, Syria is united.”

“Sweida is part of Syria. We do not want it to be under Israeli occupation,” she said. After Assad's fall, “we want to be part of a united Syria.”

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Omar Sanadiki in Sweida, and Hogir Abdo in Qamishli, contributed to this report.

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