What to know about Syria’s new caretaker government syrian war news
Following the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader and commander-in-chief of the new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa, appointed Mohammed al-Shahra to lead a caretaker government until March. -Bashir has been appointed. 1.
Experts told Al Jazeera the move aims to stabilize the country by providing basic services to citizens and preventing power struggles between armed groups over state resources and ministries.
“(A caretaker government is needed) to ensure that the state continues to function and that people have access to electricity, water, sewage and internet,” said Thomas Pierret, a Syria expert at the Institute for Research and Study of the Arab and Muslim World. “
However, experts have warned that if the caretaker government – and HTS – refuse to share power after three months, it could lose credibility.
Here’s what we know about the caretaker government and its head:
Who is Mohammed al-Bashir?
The caretaker government is headed by a technocrat who leads the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) in Idlib, a province in northwestern Syria.
Idlib became a stronghold of the opposition after the Syrian uprising erupted in March 2011. By 2017, HTS consolidated control and created the SSG from civilian technocrats.
“Mohammed al-Bashir … has done a very good job in Idlib,” said Robin Yassin-Kassab, a Syria expert and co-author of Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and in War.
“I think it is appropriate for now to extend (the Salvation Government) to all of Syria,” he said.
Analysts said al-Bashir’s background in electrical engineering, project management and administrative planning shows he has the professional knowledge to maintain basic services in the country.
He first emerged as a minister in the HTS-backed Salvation Government in 2021, according to the official website of the caretaker government.
According to Asad al Achi, executive director of Baytna, an NGO that supports local civil society groups in Syria throughout the war, he served as head of development and humanitarian affairs for two years.
“He was definitely interested in humanitarian work because that’s where the money was,” Al Achi said, referring to the SSG’s policy of taxing aid organizations.
On January 13, 2024, the Shura Council in Idlib elected al-Bashir as Prime Minister of the SSG.
Who are the other ministers?
Al-Bashir told Al Jazeera Arabic that, for the time being, SSG ministers will hold national ministerial positions. The current ministerial lineup is:
- Interior Minister Mohammad Abdul Rehman
- Economy and Resources Minister Bassel Abdul Aziz
- Information Minister Muhammad Yacoub Al-Omar
- Justice Minister Shadi Muhammad al-Waissi
- Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Mohammed Taha Al-Ahmad
- Health Minister Mazen Dukhan
- Development Minister Fadi Al-Qassim
- Minister of Local Administration and Services Mohammed Abdel Rahman Muslim
- Endowments Minister Hussam Haj Hussain
- Education Minister Nazir al-Qadri
- Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Abdel Moneim Abdel Hafez
Are there any changes going to happen?
Despite al-Bashir’s prominent role, al-Achi does not believe the acting prime minister has ambitions to consolidate power over Syria.
“What concerns me is that if (this caretaker government) extends (its tenure) for more than three months, but if it is just for three months… then it is fine,” he said.
Experts worry that HTS will try to rule all of Syria with an iron fist.
According to a report by the Syrian Network for Human Rights, HTS forcibly disappeared critics and opponents and tortured and killed people.
Al Jazeera asked the HTS media office to respond to these allegations, but they had not commented by the time of publication.
preparing to succeed
Yassin-Qassab told Al Jazeera that the caretaker government and HTS could ease concerns about a power grab by detailing when negotiations would begin with other stakeholders before forming a broad coalition.
He said a plan should aim to implement UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which calls for an 18-month transitional period during which an inclusive coalition would draft a constitution and hold UN-supervised elections. Will prepare for.
“(HTS) needs to say that this is the beginning of a process that will involve every aspect of society and all political leadership,” Yassin-Qassab said.
“This will reassure the Syrian and international communities and give the new government more legitimacy.”
Who will pay for the changes?
Syria’s economy is in shambles – the World Bank ranks its gross domestic product (GDP) 129th out of 196 states.
HTS managed to raise revenue during its rule in Idlib by taxing residents, as well as goods and relief passing through the Turkish border. However, it is not clear whether the group has sufficient finances to boost the economy and supply basic provisions in the short to medium term.
Experts believe linking sanction relief to political reforms could encourage HTS to share power.
Syria is on the United States’ list of “countries sponsoring terrorism” and on top of that, HTS is considered a “foreign terrorist organization” by the European Union, Turkey, and the United States.
According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), the EU and the US have also imposed sanctions on much of the Syrian economy, including the energy sector and trade in goods related to technology or electricity provision.
Yassin-Kassab argues that it is essential that HTS share power with other stakeholders and civil society to convince the Syrian people and the international community that the group has changed.
“It remains to be seen whether this is the beginning of a power grab by HTS and HTS-aligned civilian entities,” he told Al Jazeera.
“I certainly hope not.”
