Humanitarian Action in Syria after the Fall of Bashar al-Assad: Challenges and Opportunities for Actors Involved in Rebuilding and Recovery

Syria’s 14-year conflict and the December 2024 fall of the Assad regime have left a fractured society, ruined infrastructure, and one of the world’s largest displacement crises. As international and local actors begin to navigate the early stages of recovery, longstanding questions re-emerge around the role of humanitarian action in facilitating meaningful and sustainable post-conflict transitions. This thesis explores how humanitarian organisations can engage with Syria’s post-Assad recovery. Drawing on a qualitative, literature-based methodology, the research is grounded in a dual conceptual framework: the Relief-to-Development (R2D) Continuum and Human Security theory. These frameworks were used as interpretive tools to guide thematic analysis and reflect the layered, non-linear nature of Syria’s transition. The study synthesizes a wide range of secondary sources, including peer-reviewed articles, NGO evaluations, UN reports, and regionally grounded policy papers. It examines how humanitarian interventions are unfolding across six key domains: governance and access; localisation and capacity; infrastructure and livelihoods; displacement and reintegration; social cohesion and mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS); and broader cross-cutting concerns. The findings reveal that while humanitarian actors have made notable adaptations, particularly through partnerships with local NGOs and community-based organisations, most recovery efforts remain suspended in the early stages of the R2D spectrum. Donor restrictions, political fragmentation, and persistent insecurity keep efforts fragmented and reactive. Local NGOs, while increasingly central to service delivery and recovery planning, are underfunded and excluded from high-level decision-making. Displacement programmes lack the legal and institutional scaffolding needed for sustainable return, and social-cohesion initiatives are chronically under-resourced despite their importance for community and personal security. The analysis suggests that Syria’s recovery requires a layered, non-linear approach that addresses material, political, and psychosocial needs simultaneously. Humanitarian actors can add most value by embracing people-centred programming, sharing decision-making with local partners, and adopting adaptive funding models that accept the uncertainties of transition. Integrating these practices would help move efforts along the R2D spectrum while advancing multiple dimensions of Human Security, thus laying firmer foundations for long-term peace and development.