Nearly three months after Assad fled, much of Syria is suspended between relief at the dictatorship’s demise and anxiety over what comes next.

Although the conference was called to chart the country’s future, the Kurdish-led militia that controls much of Syria’s northeast was not invited.

Syria's interim president said on Tuesday his country had a "historic opportunity" to rebuild, addressing a national dialogue summit billed by Syria's Islamist rulers as a key milestone after decades of Assad-family rule.