Syria has a new leader, and for thousands it is a time of celebration and optimism. But old enmities and fears about what comes next haunt the country. Michael Safi reports

After more than a decade of war, and half a century of repressive rule under Bashar al-Assad and his father, Syrians have a new ruler and a new future. Michael Safi spent a week travelling around the country, speaking to people about their surging hopes and joy – but also their fears of how fragile this peace could prove to be.

Driving from Lebanon to Damascus with a family, he heard about the painful toll the years of war and repression had taken on them: a father killed, a brother disappeared, a sister jailed. But they also told him how optimistic they still were for this moment of history.