Syria’s interim president signed a temporary constitution Thursday, placing the country under Islamist rule for five years while pledging to protect the rights of all citizens during the transitional period.
The interim leadership has faced challenges in consolidating control following the December overthrow of longtime President Bashar Assad by the Islamist former insurgent group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former HTS leader, assumed the presidency after an agreement among armed groups that led the offensive against Assad. At the same meeting, leaders repealed the previous constitution and committed to drafting a new one.
While many Syrians welcomed the end of Assad’s 50-year rule, religious and ethnic minorities have expressed skepticism about the new Islamist-led government and remain hesitant to accept its authority.
Abdulhamid Al-Awak, one of seven committee members assigned by al-Sharaa to draft the temporary constitution, said it retains certain provisions from the previous constitution, including the requirement that the head of state be Muslim and that Islamic law serve as the primary source of jurisprudence. However, he stated that the document also enshrines protections for freedom of expression and the media.
The temporary constitution aims to “balance social security and freedom” during Syria’s volatile political transition, Al-Awak said. It establishes a strict separation of legislative, executive, and judicial powers. The document, published late Thursday, outlines the creation of a People’s Committee to serve as an interim parliament until a permanent constitution is adopted and elections are held. Two-thirds of its members will be appointed by a committee selected by the interim president, while al-Sharaa will directly appoint the remaining third.
The document states that the government is “committed to combatting all forms of violent extremism while respecting rights and freedoms” and affirms that “citizens are equal before the law without discrimination based on race, religion, gender, or lineage.” It defines the army as a “professional national institution” with exclusive control over armed forces and criminalizes “glorifying the former Assad regime.”
A committee to draft a permanent constitution will be formed, but it remains unclear whether it will be more inclusive of Syria’s political, religious, and ethnic groups.
On Monday, al-Sharaa reached a ceasefire agreement with U.S.-backed Kurdish-led authorities in northeastern Syria, which includes the integration of their armed forces into the central government’s security agencies. The deal followed the suppression of an insurgency last week by pro-Assad gunmen. Rights groups report that retaliatory attacks by factions in the counteroffensive led to the deaths of hundreds of civilians, primarily from Assad’s Alawite sect.
The interim constitution provides a timeline for Syria’s political transition. Al-Sharaa has said that drafting a permanent constitution could take up to three years, while national elections could take up to five years.
Al-Sharaa convened a national dialogue conference last month, leading to the adoption of the temporary constitution and the scheduling of interim parliamentary elections. Critics argue that the conference lacked representation from Syria’s diverse ethnic and sectarian communities, as well as civil society organizations.
The United States and European nations have been reluctant to lift sanctions imposed on Syria under Assad’s rule, citing concerns about the new leadership’s commitment to an inclusive political system and the protection of minorities. Al-Sharaa and regional governments have urged them to reconsider, warning that economic instability could further destabilize the country.
Also Thursday, an Israeli airstrike targeted an apartment building in a Damascus suburb, injuring three people, including one critically, according to Syrian state media and a paramedic group. The Israeli military said the strike hit a command center used by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group to coordinate attacks against Israel.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that “whenever terrorist activity is organized against Israel,” al-Sharaa “will find air force planes circling above him and attacking terrorist targets.”
A Palestinian Islamic Jihad official at the site, Ismail Sindak, told The Associated Press that the targeted apartment belonged to the group’s leader, Ziad Nakhaleh, but had been vacant for years. He said Nakhaleh was not in Syria and denied any casualties in the attack.
Meanwhile, a high-level Turkish delegation, including the foreign minister, defense minister, and intelligence chief, made an unannounced visit to Damascus. The visit followed the agreement between Syria’s interim government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, as well as recent violence on the Syrian coast.
Thousands of Syrians displaced by sectarian violence remain sheltered at a Russian airbase in Latakia province. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Thursday that “our military has provided shelter for more than 8,000 people, likely approaching 9,000, mostly women and children.”
