And the Alameda, a park that was once overgrown with bushes where men met other menin the dark, has become a bright and grand space of landscaped paths and trees.
In Serjeh, a village perched on a hill overlooking olive trees rooted in earth the colour of terracotta, the bulky, uniformed men of Suqur al-Sham (Falcons of Syria) strike a sterner tone.