Syria's rebel leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, dismissed online controversy over videos showing him gesturing to a young woman to cover her hair before posing for a photo with her last week.
The incident drew criticism from both liberal and conservative commentators amid intense speculation about the county's future direction after the rebels came to power.
Liberals saw the request from the head of the Sunni Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a sign that he may try to impose an Islamic system in Syria after leading the ouster of Bashar al-Assad, while hard-line conservatives criticized him for agreed to be photographed with the woman in the first place.
“I didn't force her. But it's my personal freedom. I want the photos to be taken the way I like them.” Sharaa said in an interview with the BBC's Jeremy Bowen.
The woman, Lea Kheirallah, also said she was not bothered by the request.
She said he asked in a “gentle and paternal way” and that she believed “the leader has the right to be represented in any way he sees fit”.
However, the incident showed some of the difficulties any future Syrian leader may have in attracting and unifying such a religiously diverse country.
Sunni Muslims make up the majority of the population, with the remainder divided between Christians, Alawites, Druze and Ismailis.
There is also a wide range of views among the various political and armed groups opposed to Assad, with some wanting secular democracy and others wanting rule under Islamic law.
HTS, a former al-Qaeda affiliate, initially imposed strict rules of conduct and dress code when it seized control of the former rebel stronghold in Idlib province in 2017. However, it has lifted these rules in recent years in response to public criticism.
The Koran, Islam's holy book, tells Muslims – men and women – to dress modestly.
Male modesty is interpreted as covering the area from the navel to the knees – and for women it is usually seen as covering everything but their face, hands and feet when in the presence of men they are not related to or married to.
Lea Kheirallah asked to take a photo with Sharaa – who was previously known by his battle name Abu Mohammed al-Jolani – when he toured the Mezzeh district of Damascus on December 10.
Before agreeing, Sharaa gestured for her to cover her hair and she compliedlifting the hood of his sweater and then standing next to him for the photo.
Many videos and photos of the incident were shared on social media, sparking widespread outrage among ordinary users and media commentators.
Those with liberal or non-conservative views saw it as an alarming look at the possible future of Syria under HTS, wary of increasingly conservative policies such as requiring all women to wear the hijab or headscarf.
France 24's Arabic channel discussed the incident with a headline asking if Syria was “moving towards Islamic rule”.
Others were harsher in their condemnation. A Syrian journalist said: “We replaced a dictator with a reactionary dictator.”
On social media, other commentators warned of “ultra-extremists” rising to power, while others condemned “forcing a free woman” to adopt a conservative guise.
Islamist hardliners on Telegram criticized Shara for agreeing to be filmed and photographed next to a young woman.
Some called Ms Kheirallah a “mutabarijah” – a negative term for women considered immodestly dressed or wearing make-up.
Such hardliners range from clerics to influential commentators, whose views are often shared and read by Syria-focused conservative communities online and are likely to reach HTS supporters and possibly officials.
Most of them appear to be based in Syria, mainly in the former HTS-dominated rebel stronghold of Idlib, with some having previously served in HTS ranks.
They argued that it was religiously impermissible for unrelated men and women to interact closely and accused Shara of seeking “vain public attention” and showing “condescension” on matters contrary to strict religious teachings.
A post on a Telegram channel called Min Idlib (From Idlib) said the HTS leader was “too busy taking selfies with young ladies” to respond to demands to release prisoners from HTS prisons in Idlib.
Many of the conservative figures who have spoken out against the photo have criticized Sharaa in the past on both political and religious grounds, including clerics who have left HTS.