AP PHOTOS: Portraits of former Syrian rebels now soldiers

By The Associated Press

Former Syrian rebels who now serve as part of the new Syrian government’s armed forces posed for photo portraits with their weapons Friday.

The soldiers, who took part in the overthrow of former president Bashar Assad’s government, were gathered together to wait for a military parade to begin in the central square of the capital Damascus.

Syria’s transition has been surprisingly smooth but it’s only been a few weeks since Assad fled the country and his administration and forces melted away. The insurgents who ousted Assad are rooted in fundamentalist Islamist ideology, and though they have vowed to create a pluralist system, it isn’t clear how or whether they plan to share power.