https://arab.news/gxf9w
- President Ahmed Al-Sharaa announced transitional 23-member cabinet on Saturday
- Sharaa said the new government鈥檚 goal was rebuilding the country
DAMASCUS: Syria鈥檚 interim President Ahmed Al-Sharaa said Monday a new transitional government would aim for consensus in rebuilding the war-torn country but acknowledged it would be unable to satisfy everyone.
The transitional 23-member cabinet 鈥� without a prime minister 鈥� was announced Saturday, more than three months after Sharaa鈥檚 Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) led an offensive that toppled longtime president Bashar Assad.
The autonomous Kurdish-led administration in northeast Syria has rejected the government鈥檚 legitimacy, saying it 鈥渄oes not reflect the country鈥檚 diversity.鈥�
Sharaa said the new government鈥檚 goal was rebuilding the country but warned that 鈥渨ill not be able to satisfy everyone.鈥�
鈥淎ny steps we take will not reach consensus 鈥� this is normal 鈥� but we must reach a consensus鈥� as much as possible, he told a gathering at the presidential palace broadcast on Syrian television after prayers for the Eid Al-Fitr Muslim holiday.
Authorities are seeking to reunite and rebuild the country and its institutions after nearly 14 years of civil war.
Some of Sharaa鈥檚 closest supporters and other figures aligned with him make up the majority of the new cabinet.
Sharaa said the ministers were chosen for their competence and expertise, 鈥渨ithout particular ideological or political orientations.鈥�
Most members are Sunni Muslim, reflecting the demographic make-up of Syria, ruled for decades by the Assad clan which belongs to the Alawite minority.
Amid international calls for an inclusive transition, the new government has four ministers from minority groups in Syria 鈥� a Christian, a Druze, a Kurd and an Alawite, none of whom were handed key portfolios.
Sharaa said the new government鈥檚 make-up took into consideration 鈥渢he diversity of Syrian society鈥� while rejecting a quota system for religious or ethnic minorities, instead opting for 鈥減articipation.鈥�
鈥淎 new history is being written for Syria... we are all writing it,鈥� he told the gathering.
This month, Sharaa signed into force a constitutional declaration regulating the country鈥檚 transitional period, set for five years.
Some experts and rights groups have warned that it concentrates power in Sharaa鈥檚 hands and fails to include enough protections for minorities.
This month also saw the worst sectarian bloodshed since Assad鈥檚 overthrow, with civilian massacres in Alawite-majority areas.
Sharaa has previously vowed to prosecute those behind the 鈥渂loodshed of civilians鈥� and set up a fact-finding committee.