Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator
A new government will be formed in Syria on March 1. Syria's foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, announced the upcoming changes on the sidelines of the World Governments Summit in the United Arab Emirates on February 12.
"The government that will be launched March 1 will represent the Syrian people as much as possible and take its diversity into account," Shaibani said.
Last month, Ahmed al-Sharaa, leader of the armed rebel group HTS was appointed interim president.
Shaibani said the new cabinet would be representative of the multi-ethnic, multi-confessional nature of the country, in line with the international community's calls for the protection of minorities.
The new authorities will have to rebuild Syria's institutions and seek to have the US and EU sanctions on Syria lifted. The sanctions were in place because of the atrocities committed by the former Assad regime, but since his departure on December 8, serve no purpose except to hurt the Syrian people, and hamper the rebuilding and recovery. It is hoped that Arab countries allied with the US and EU will bring political weight to bear on the issue abroad on behalf of the Syrian people.
The new authorities are to form a transitional legislature with the Assad-era parliament dissolved along with the Baath party which ruled Syria for decades.
On February 11, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa received Head of the Syrian Negotiation Commission (SNC) Bader Jamous, Head of the National Coalition for the Revolution Forces and Opposition Hadi al-Bahra and delegations representing the two institutions.
During the meeting in Damascus, Jamous and Bahra announced the dissolution of their institutions and handed over their files to Sharaa, signaling the end of the Syrian opposition in exile, and affirming their support of the interim Sharaa administration.
Jamous and Bahra restated their hope that drafting a new constitution, and holding free and fair elections would be part of the transitional phase, as well as the formation of the Syrian army as a national army and integrating all military factions under the authority of the state. HTS and other militias have been dissolved, with their fighters to be integrated into a future national force under the Defense Ministry and restricting the arms to the state.
The Istanbul-based National Coalition was formed in November 2012 after opposition groups and figures met in Qatar, and is the main component of the SNC, which emerged after a meeting in Riyadh in 2015, and represented the Syrian opposition during UN-sponsored talks with the Assad regime in Geneva.
On December 7, 2024 Bahra reported on X that the situation in Syria was unfolding as planned. The very next day, the HTS and coalition of rebel militias, arrived in Damascus and President Assad and his extended family fled the country.
On December 18, Bahra said Syria's transitional government should be credible and not exclude any Syrian party or be based on sectarianism. In a press conference in Istanbul, Bahra admitted he and his team had not met Sharaa, but had communications with him. Bahra planned to return to Syria after years of absence and set up a headquarters there.
On December 28, Bahra stressed that the Syrian people have goals following the fall of the Assad regime, ranging from stability, security, essential services and improved foreign relations with neighbors and globally.
He envisioned the new Syria with a strong free economy which would foster creating jobs to advance its agriculture, industry, and trade. Fighting terrorism and the drug trade would be elements of Syria's future.
In January, Bahra and others of his team arrived in Damascus, about one month after the fall of Assad. While the role of Bahra and others appears to have changed, they have laid a foundation of understanding concerning the planned national conference, which is planned to include a broad spectrum of Syrians.
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