Syria’s Leader: Elections Could Take Up to 4 Years

Syria’s current de facto leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, stated that it could take up to four years to organize elections in Syria. He also plans to disband his Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which has led the insurgency and is now overseeing the new authority in the country. Al-Sharaa shared these insights during an interview with Saudi television channel Al-Arabiya, nearly a month after HTS successfully overthrew President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, which had been in power for decades. This move marked the end of the civil war that had been raging in Syria since 2011.

According to al-Sharaa, elections will require time due to the need for political dialogue among Syria’s various factions and the rewriting of the country’s constitution, which has been under the rule of the Assad family for over fifty years. He also mentioned that the country’s infrastructure, severely damaged by the war, must be rebuilt.

Al-Sharaa emphasized that the opportunity Syria now faces is rare and could not be expected again soon. He expressed a desire for the new constitution to be stable and enduring.

Until March 1, al-Sharaa will continue as Syria’s de facto leader. On that date, Syria’s various factions are scheduled to engage in political discussions to shape the country’s future and establish a transitional government. At that time, HTS plans to dissolve, following years of dominance as the primary rebel group controlling a strategic region in the northwest of Syria.