Newly empowered Syrian warlord Ahmed al-Sharaa has indicated, in a new interview, that it may take up to four years before the country will hold new presidential elections.
Sharaa, also known by his war name Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, is the leader of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Sunni Islamist organization that the United States has designated as a terrorist group. HTS is a rebrand of Jabhat al-Nusra, which was itself an offshoot of al-Qaeda.
Sharaa and his HTS forces led a recent offensive that forced Syrian President Bashar al-Assad after more than 24 years in office.
Syria has been locked in a multi-sided civil war since 2011. Even with Assad’s fall, some of the competing factions are still fighting for differing motives.
Assad’s ouster has left the Syrian people and the international community with many questions about the country’s future. For now, Sharaa is among the most influential leaders in post-Assad Syria.
Speaking with the Saudi state-owned Al Arabiya television channel on Dec. 29, Sharaa said he expects the various Syrian militant factions will begin to resolve their differences at an upcoming national conference in March.
“There will be no division of Syria in any way,” he added.
Sharaa said one key goal will be to integrate the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into a newly organized national armed forces. For now, reconciliation with the predominantly Kurdish SDF may be challenging.
Turkey considers the SDF to be closely linked with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a Kurdish faction Turkey and the United States both have designated as a terrorist group. Sharaa said he intends to integrate SDF into a post-Assad unity government in Syria, but will prevent Syria from becoming a haven for the PKK and a launchpad from which they can attack.
After his HTS forces took the capital city of Damascus earlier this month, Sharaa named several of his HTS allies to positions of power in an interim government. Speaking with Al Arabiya, Sharaa insisted these appointments “were essential for the period and not intended to exclude anyone.”
As for a new government, Sharaa said he expects the March national conference to begin to bridge the inter-factional divides. From there, he said it may take up to three years to draft a new constitution.
He said the first set of new elections could take up to four years, because he first wants to see a comprehensive population census.
Despite his terror designation, President Joe Biden’s administration has been willing to give Sharaa some breathing room following Assad’s ouster.
“Make no mistake, some of the rebel groups that took down Assad have their own grim record of terrorism and human right abuses,” Biden said in a Dec. 8 address after Assad fled the country. “We’ve taken note of statements by the leaders of these rebel groups in recent days. And they’re saying the right things now, but as they take on greater responsibility, we will assess not just their words, but their actions.”
Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Barbara A. Leaf met with Sharaa on Dec. 20. Following the meeting, she announced the Biden administration had retracted a $10 million bounty the United States had placed on the HTS leader.
Speaking with Al Arabiya, Sharaa appeared to preempt deliberations about the U.S. dropping its terror group designation against HTS. Instead, Sharaa said he plans to announce the dissolution of HTS during the upcoming national dialogue.
Some U.S. lawmakers, such as Reps. Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Brendan Boyle (D-PA), have also called for the United States to begin lowering sanctions it had imposed against Syria over the years. Some of these sanctions aimed to block international financial transactions flowing to Syria. Other sanctions barred the flow of medical supplies to the country and targeted Syria’s construction industry, making life difficult in the war torn country.
Sharaa said he aims to see dramatic improvements in Syria’s public services within a year. Much of that may depend on lifting sanctions.
This article was originally published by FreeBase News and is reprinted with permission.
