On September 17, Syrian singer Assala Nasri returned to her home country for the first time in 15 years, holding a concert at the Al-Fayhaa sports palace in Damascus. This marked a significant moment for both Nasri and Syria, as it came after years of exile, primarily in Cairo, following her public support for the uprising against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The regime collapsed in December 2024, according to some reports. Nasri's return was met with great enthusiasm, with news outlets describing the crowd's reaction as "a shower of applause and thunderous cheers." The singer was visibly emotional, struggling to hold back tears, as she performed songs that reflected both her personal journey and the collective experience of Syrians. Nasri opened the concert with the song "Keep your head high, you are a free Syrian," which resonated deeply with the audience. She also performed a new song with lyrics that read, "World, tell my mother that Assala is back in Syria." The event was widely promoted with posters across Damascus that read, "Assala is back in Syria." The concert was supported by the Syrian Ministry of Culture, and the minister, Mohammad Yassine Saleh, even took to the stage to celebrate Nasri's return, calling it "the return of every honest and free Syrian to his country" and "the victory of the oppressed over the oppressors." The concert was described as having "a deep emotional significance, given the trials endured by Syria over the years," according to the Syrian news outlet Enab Baladi. Nasri herself described her return as a "rebirth," emphasizing the symbolic weight of the event after years of conflict and political upheaval. However, the concert was held under tight security due to opposition from conservative Islamist groups, who had called for its cancellation. They argued that holding concerts contradicted Islamic principles, particularly in a country still healing from years of war. The event highlighted an ongoing tension within Syria between more pragmatic elements of the regime and its more conservative supporters. Analysts have noted this as an example of the "silent attrition war" between these groups. The Lebanese newspaper L'Orient-Le Jour described the situation as "a new example of the familiar conflict between religious conservatism and the aspiration for an open society in Syria." A Syrian columnist echoed this, stating that in a country emerging from years of conflict, maintaining social peace is as crucial as addressing economic and political challenges. Allowing divisive campaigns to spread, they warned, could lead to difficult-to-contain divisions.