Plenty of Syrians are disappointed by the lack of justice for the former regime. Deals have been cut with commanders responsible for massacres under Mr Assad. “It was very clear that there was something boiling which had to do with accountability and transitional justice,” says Orwa Ajjoub, a Syrian researcher at Malmo university.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says 162 civilians were "executed" in a coastal region linked to ousted president Bashar al-Assad.