A man takes a selfie with his family, standing on a float, as they celebrate the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on Dec. 9, 2024. (Credit: Omar Haj Kadour/AFP)
The new Syrian administration is expected to appoint Mohammad al-Bashir as Prime Minister of the transitional government, according to Qatar's Al Jazeera. His task will be to form a new government to manage the transition phase, following the flight of deposed president Bashar al-Assad, who ruled Syria with an iron fist for 24 years, on Sunday, in the face of an insurgent offensive led by the radical Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) headed by Abu Mohammad al-Jolani.
Mohammad al-Bashir was the head of the “government” proclaimed by HTS in Idlib.
On Sunday, the chairman of the Syrian National Coalition, Hadi al-Bahra, told Reuters on the sidelines of the Doha Forum that Syria should enjoy an 18-month transition period to establish “a safe, neutral and calm environment” with a view to guaranteeing free elections. “The constitution will determine whether we will have a parliamentary, presidential or mixed system. On this basis, we will organize the elections and the people will choose their leader,” he explained.
The rebel advance has plunged the country into a period of uncertainty, after 14 years of civil war triggered by the bloody repression of pro-democracy demonstrations, a conflict which has claimed more than 500,000 lives.
On Sunday, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani announced that “the institutions of the Syrian state will be supervised by former Prime Minister Mohammad Jalali, until they are handed over.” Appointed by Assad in September, he had expressed his willingness to support the continuity of the government.
Caretaker French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, whose country severed relations with Syria in 2012 over the crackdown on peaceful protests, said on Monday that France's support for Syria's political transition “will depend on respect” for women's rights, minorities and international law.
