A spokesman for Syria’s new transitional authority has caused widespread outrage after controversial statements about the role and alleged “nature” of women during a TV interview.
"A woman is an important and honoured element of society but her tasks should be in line with roles she can perform. For example, if we say a woman becomes responsible for the defence ministry, is this in accordance with her being and her psychological and biological nature? There is no doubt that it is not in accordance," Obeida Arnaout, the spokesman for Syria's new political authorities told Lebanese television station Al-Jadeed.
"Can she perform the tasks and responsibilities attached to this role like a man? She can’t, in my opinion."
Arnaout added that women would be allowed to take up "any role they are able to perform", saying that the allowed roles would be "specified by a constitutional committee".
He also said that "Christian women and women of any other sect" would not be forced to wear hijab, after HTS leader Ahmad Al-Sharaa sparked controversy by asking a non-hijabi woman to wear the hijab in his presence.
When questioned about whether women would be allowed to serve as judges, Arnaout was evasive.
"Regarding if a woman can take up a judicial post, this could be an area of study and research for specialists. It is too early to talk about something like this as far as women is concerned," he said.
Anger amid conflicting HTS signals on women’s rights
Ever since it led a rebel assault which overthrew Syria’s longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad, the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, has tried to present assurances that it will respect the rights of women and minorities in a new Syria.
In an interview with the BBC on Wednesday, Al-Sharaa, said that women’s education will continue and Syria will not be governed like Taliban-ruled Afghanistan.
However, Aranaout’s sexist comments were greeted with alarm and anger by Syrian women, while spawning mockery on social media.
Rafif Jouejati, the Vice President of Ahrar, the Syrian Liberal Party, told The New Arab that Arnaout’s comments demonstrated "his utter ignorance with regard to the role Syrian women play every day in all aspects of life".
"Syrian women did not fight in our revolution for freedom, democracy, and equality for 13 plus years to have him issue a statement that contradicts the spirit and the goals of the revolution."
She called on Arnaout to immediately retract and apologise for his comments, while saying HTS should meet with women's organisations, so that Arnaout and other officials "can be better educated as to women’s capabilities to lead in the public sphere, in ministries, including yes - defence.
Rahaf Al-Doughli, a UK-based Syrian academic and author of Romanticizing Masculinity in Baathist Syria, told The New Arab that Arnaout's statements "reflect a romanticised and traditionalist view of women, reinforcing stereotypes that view them as passive contributors rather than equal partners in governance and peacebuilding".
She called his comments "deeply unsettling" adding that "the situation should alarm us all".
Mouna Khaity, a human rights activist, accused HTS of focusing on sending reassurances to the international community while failing to reassure Syrian society about their plans for governing Syria.
"Arnaout's words are a very important indicator of the change they want to impose on Syrian society," she told The New Arab.
Islamist rebel groups, such as HTS, have a history of trying to isolate women from political and public spheres, she said, something that HTS could be trying to impose "in a gentle way".
"Women were among the first participants in the Syrian revolution and were on the front lines, carrying out first responses. [Arnaout’s] narrative tries to show that women are incapable of action and this is completely at odds with what is on the ground in Syrian society," she added.