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I'm about 2/3 through now. I don't specifically remember the ending to 'Old Man and His Son'; I'll need to go back and listen again to that section to know which part you're referring to.
One thing I noticed though is after Matar describes the fall of the regime and then the brief window of freedom and normalcy before factions vying for power devolved the country- he describes that outcome as shocking and surprising. I find this view by him, an author whom I consider very intelligent and already experienced in the darker side of human nature in governments, surprising myself. I can understand the hope that something better would have come from it all, but not the unwillingness to consider the likelihood of a darker outcome such as what happened, and he mentions it very matter-of-factly as if of course anyone wouldn't have considered that possibility.
I wonder if proximity and very personal ties to the situation and the people clouded his view in that regard.
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