Just a week after President Bashir al-Assad's regime was toppled by the Islamist HTS rebel group, people were going about their lives as usual in Syria's capital, Damascus, shopping and socialising - and with surprisingly few armed rebels patrolling the streets.

As the fighters who ousted Bashar al-Assad set out to assert control over the country, they pursued former government forces loyal to the Assad regime, resulting in deadly clashes in parts of the country.