A Syrian Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) fighter at a military parade in Damascus, Dec. 27, 2024. (Credit: Khalil Ashawi/Reuters)
Former rebels have been promoted to officer ranks in the future Syrian army, according to a decree by the country's new leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, including foreign jihadists, according to experts.
The new government, formed by a coalition led by radical Islamists, had last week unveiled an agreement with “all armed groups” to disband them, and “integrate them under the Defense Ministry.” The decree, published late on Sunday evening on the Telegram account of Ahmad al-Sharaa's “General Command,” lists 49 names, including Syrian rebels and former army officers who deserted early and joined the Islamist rebellion. These promotions come “within the framework of the development and modernization of the army..., in order to guarantee security and stability,” explains the decree.
“The majority of these promotions involve personalities from Ahmad al-Sharaa's inner circle,” Rami Abdel Rahmane, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), told AFP.
These are the first military promotions since the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)-led coalition seized power and overthrew Bashar al-Assad on Dec. 8.
Two men were promoted to the rank of general, including Mourhaf Abou Qasra, HTS's military chief, who was tipped to become Defense Minister in the transitional government. Five others were promoted to brigadier-general and some 40 to colonel.
SOHR, which has a vast network of sources in Syria, identified at least “six foreign jihadists” on the list, including an Albanian, a Jordanian, a Tajik, a Uyghur from Turkestan, but also a Turk from HTS. The Uyghur is from the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), a jihadist group based in Idleb, the Syrian rebel stronghold from which the offensive that led to Assad's downfall began, Abdel Rahmane told AFP.
Aymenn Al-Tamimi, an expert on jihadist movements and the Syrian conflict, identified three foreigners on the list: A Uighur, a Jordanian and a Turk “who led the Turkish fighter bloc under HTC and is now [promoted to] brigadier general,” he told AFP.
As for the Syrian officers, “most” are from HTS, while others come from “allied factions”, according to SOHR.
