Ahmad al-Shara' Appointed as Head of Transitional Legislative Council in Syria

Rebels who overthrew Bashar al-Assad's government in Syria last month appointed Ahmad al-Shara', leader of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, as the interim president of Syria on Wednesday, January 30. This announcement came following a meeting of former rebels in Damascus, where it was decided that al-Shara' would be tasked with forming a transitional legislative council. On the same day, it was also announced that all armed groups related to the rebels, the Syrian army, and security apparatuses affiliated with the Assad regime were dissolved. Additionally, the Ba'ath Party and allied parties were declared banned, and all Ba'ath Party assets were transferred to the new government. Colonel Hassan Abdul Ghani, spokesperson for the new Syrian government, announced that the 2012 constitution, drafted under Assad's rule, has been abolished, and a draft of a new constitution will be prepared soon. Armed groups in the country will also be dissolved, and their forces will be integrated into government institutions. Al-Shara', previously known as Abu Muhammad al-Julani, was considered a former leader of al-Qaeda but later severed ties with the group and has recently attempted to present himself as a defender of pluralism and religious tolerance. Representatives of the Russian government visited Syria for the first time after the fall of Bashar al-Assad. After Assad's fall, the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group has taken control of the interim Syrian government, with most officials selected from local managers in Idlib province, which was previously under rebel control. With the collapse of the former Syrian army, al-Shara' has called for the establishment of a new national army, but there are concerns about how disparate rebel groups with different ideologies will unite. One of the challenging issues is the fate of the Syrian Kurdish forces, which have established an autonomous region since the early civil war and have never fully aligned with either Assad or the rebels. Following Assad's fall, conflicts between Kurdish forces and Turkey-backed groups allied with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham have increased. The 'Syrian Democratic Forces,' supported by the U.S., were not present at the recent meeting of Syrian armed groups and have not commented on recent developments. Washington, which had previously set a $10 million reward for al-Shara's capture, has canceled this reward following a visit by an American delegation to Damascus.