Assad’s fall means a rediscovery of Syria for this photographer

Alaa Hassan was 25 years old when the uprisings against Bashar al-Assad began in Syria. He was part of the movement that grew quickly against the former president and that turned into a civil war. In 2013, facing mandatory military conscription, and the death of some of his closest friends at the hands of the security forces, Hassan decided to leave the country. It wasn’t until last December, when the Assad government fell, that he was able to return. Now, he tells The World’s Shirin Jaafari that he has a new mission: to document the loss, but also the rebirth, of his country.