Political Trust at a Time of Pandemic: A long-term repercussion of COVID-19 on durable peace

In Syria, like in other conflict-affected countries, the COVID-19 pandemic added another layer of vulnerability and uncertainty. Several reports pointed to COVID-19 as a threat multiplier, exacerbating existing fragilities and grievances and posing long-lasting challenges to durable peace. Yet, it is not easy to single out the impact of the pandemic on pre-existing vulnerabilities. This is all the more so the case in Syria, which entered its tenth year of conflict in March 2021. Recognizing the importance to shed light on the COVID-19-peace-conflict nexus, we asked 50 residents in opposition-held areas in northwest Syria how the outbreak of the pandemic affected their perceptions of key governmental actors, and how these perceptions reversely affected their response to the virus.