section_path: Aftermath/Political transition
section_name: Political transition
paragraph_text: Political transition
  
  HTS leader Ahmed al-Sharaa stated on Telegram that Syrian public institutions would not immediately be given to its military forces, and would instead temporarily be held by Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali until the full political transition was completed. Al-Jalali announced in a social media video that he planned to stay in Damascus and cooperate with the Syrian people, while expressing hope that Syria could become "a normal country" and begin to engage in diplomacy with other nations. Al-Sharaa called events "a new chapter in the history of the region" and condemned Syria's role as "a playground for Iranian ambitions," characterized by sectarianism and corruption.
  
  Mohammed al-Bashir, head of the Syrian Salvation Government, was appointed by the Syrian General Command as the new Prime Minister of the Syrian caretaker government on 10 December 2024. HTS has assured that they will protect and allow Christians and other minorities to freely practice their religion. On 31 December, al-Sharaa met with senior Syrian Christian leaders at the People's Palace.
  
  On 29 January 2025, during the Syrian Revolution Victory Conference in Damascus, the Syrian General Command appointed al-Sharaa as president for the transitional period after he had served as the de facto leader following the fall of the Assad regime. As president, al-Sharaa announced plans to issue a "constitutional declaration" as a legal reference following the repeal of the 2012 constitution of Ba'athist Syria. On 12 February, two major organizations of the former Syrian opposition, the Syrian National Coalition and the Syrian Negotiation Commission, announced their allegiance to the caretaker government.
  
  On 11 March, al-Sharaa signed an agreement with Mazloum Abdi, the commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), to incorporate SDF-controlled institutions into the state, establish border crossings, and pledge to fight the remnants of the Assad regime. The deadline for the merger has been set for the end of 2025.
  
  On 13 March, he signed an interim constitution for a transitional period of five years, enshrining Islamic law as a main derivation of jurisprudence and promising to protect the rights of all Syria's ethnic and religious groups. The Interim Constitution sets a presidential system with the executive power at the hands of the president who appoints the ministers, without the position of prime minister.
  
  On 29 March, the Syrian transitional government was announced by al-Sharaa at a ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Damascus, in which the new ministers were sworn in and delivered speeches outlining their agendas. The government replaced the Syrian caretaker government, which was formed following the fall of the Assad regime. The post of prime minister was abolished.
  
  Since then, a number of Western governments have lifted the sanctions on Syria, most notably the United States and the United Kingdom.