German officials have told the BBC that a decision by the new Islamist authorities in Syria to erase evolution from the school curriculum is troubling - a concern that is echoed by many Syrians. We hear from Germany's Special Coordinator for Syria and from Syrian writer Rima Flihan. Also on the programme: The US Surgeon General has called for risk warnings on alcoholic beverages, similar to the labels on cigarettes, following new research that links the drinks to seven types of cancer; and why a New York judge is insisting on sentencing US president-elect Donald Trump days before his inauguration. (Photo: Head of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Syria's de facto leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, meets with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and Syria's newly appointed Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, in Damascus, Syria January 3, 2025. Credit: Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham/Handout via REUTERS)
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Hello and welcome to NewsHour from the BBC World Service.
Coming to you live from London with me, Sean Lay.
The Kurdish authorities who run parts of northern Syria have joined condemnation of changes to the country's school curriculum.
Reports this week suggested Hayat Tahrir Al Sham, or hts, the rebel group which caused the Assad regime to collapse, was planning to remove the theory of evolution and the Ottoman EMP classroom teaching.
On a visit on Friday to meet Ahmed Al Sharrah, the country's interim leader, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock urged him not to Islamize the judicial or education systems, according to the Syrian Kurdish News Agency.
The Kurdish run Education Authority said the proposed change would weaken the unity of Syrians and create quotes the danger of raising an extremist generation.
Well, Tobias Lindner, the German Federal Foreign Office Minister of State whose special coordinator for Syria was part of that European delegation delegation that visited Damascus on Friday.
Earlier, my colleague Paul Henley asked him first about their expectations of the country's new leaders.
We expect that a transitional phase, also the phase how a constitution is being drafted needs to be as inclusive as possible.
So it needs to include all the Syrians, be it Kurds, be it Alawites, be it Cruises, Christians, you name it.
So it needs to include all religions, all ethnicities, and it needs to respect fundamental human rights, especially women's and girls rights.
Is there room for cautious optimism here?
I mean, can we sound a note of sort of nervous celebration, the fact that Syria hasn't yet fallen into chaos, that constructive talks like yours are happening, and that there is hope for an inclusive Syrian society of the future?
I think there are reasons for hope, although we have to admit, you know, everyone is happy that Assad left the country.
But it is not the guarantee that the future of Syria will be a better one, is just the chance for a better future.
And we need to use that chance right now.
What we have heard from Al Sharah and from HTS leaders sounds very promising, but we made clear that we will assess and evaluate HTs and their leaders not by their words, but by their actions.
But are their words promising?
Are they talking about equal rights for women?