Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed Salah said the country was exhausted by war and posed no threat to its neighbors or the West.

He called for the lifting of sanctions on Syria in an interview with the BBC in Damascus.

Less than two weeks ago, Sala led the lightning offensive that toppled the regime of Bashar al-Assad. He is the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the dominant group in the rebel alliance, and was previously known by his wartime alias Abu Mohammad al-Jolani.

He said HTS should be removed from the list of terrorist organizations. It is designated as such by the United Nations, the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom, among others, because it began as an offshoot of Al Qaeda, from which it broke away in 2016.

Sala said HTS is not a terrorist organization.

He said they were not targeting civilians or civilian areas. In fact, they consider themselves victims of the crimes of the Assad regime. He said victims should not be treated the same as their oppressors.

He denies that he wants to turn Syria into a version of Afghanistan.

Sarah said these countries are very different and have different traditions. Afghanistan is a tribal society. In Syria, he said, there is a different mentality. He said he believed in women’s education.

Salad was relaxed throughout the interview, wearing casual clothes and trying to reassure anyone who believes his organization has not yet escaped its extremist past.

Many Syrians do not believe him.

The actions of Syria’s new rulers in the coming months will reveal what kind of country they want Syria to be and how they want to rule it.