Latest news with #SyrianPolitics
CTV News
2 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Syria to hold first parliamentary elections since Assad's fall in September
In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, left, meets with Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani, center, and Mohammed Taha al-Ahmad, chairman of the Higher Committee for People's Assembly Elections, right, in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, July 27, 2025. (SANA via AP) DAMASCUS, Syria — Syria will hold parliamentary elections in September, the head of a body tasked with organizing the election process told state media Sunday. Mohammed Taha al-Ahmad, chairman of the Higher Committee for People's Assembly Elections, told state news agency SANA that elections will take place between Sept. 15 and 20. They will be the first to take place under the country's new authorities after the fall of former President Bashar Assad in a lightning rebel offensive in December. One third of the 210 seats will the appointed by interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, with the rest to be elected. In a recent interview with the Erem News site, another member of the elections committee, Hassan al-Daghim, said an electoral college will be set up in each of Syria's provinces to vote for the elected seats. A temporary constitution signed by al-Sharaa in March called for a People's Committee to be set up to serve as an interim parliament until a permanent constitution is adopted and general elections held, a process that could take years. The announcement of impending elections comes at a time when the country is increasingly divided in its views of the new authorities in Damascus after sectarian violence broke out in the southern province of Sweida earlier this month. The fighting killed hundreds of people and threatened to unravel Syria's fragile postwar transition. The violent clashes, which broke out two weeks ago, were sparked by tit-for-tat kidnappings between armed Bedouin clans and fighters from the Druze religious minority. Syrian government forces intervened, ostensibly to end the fighting, but effectively sided with the clans. Some government fighters reportedly executed Druze civilians and burned and looted houses. Israel intervened, launching airstrikes on government forces and on the Defense Ministry headquarters. Israel said it was acting to defend the Druze minority. The Associated Press
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Syria, Kurds and US discuss Kurdish reintegration in high-level talks
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa hosted Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander Mazloum Abdi and US Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack to discuss the reintegration of Kurdish-held areas into the Syrian state, Syrian and Kurdish sources said. The talks could lead to the reshaping of the political landscape in post-war Syria. Sources close to the Kurdish-led SDF told dpa the delegation went to Damascus to discuss implementing the March 10 agreement signed with the Syrian government. The deal outlines terms for restoring state authority in north-eastern Syria, which is mainly controlled by the Kurds. The delegation also included Ilham Ahmed and Fawza Youssef, representing the Kurdish Autonomous Administration. In an interview with the Kurdish Rudaw Media Network, US envoy Barrack described the Syrian government as showing "incredible enthusiasm" for unifying institutions under the banner of "one state, one nation, one army, one government." He criticized the SDF for its pace of engagement, stating: "I think SDF has been slow in accepting and negotiating and moving towards that, and my advice to them is to speed that." "There is only one road and that road is to Damascus," Barrack said, adding: "We are running out of time.' Syrian government sources told dpa that Barrack informed Damascus that all SDF forces will withdraw from east of the Euphrates River by August 17. The talks focused on dismantling parallel institutions and integrating local governance into national structures, the sources said. Accord to reunite Syria In March, the US-backed SDF reached a landmark agreement with Syria's new leadership. It deal calls for the integration of all civil and military institutions in north-east Syria under central government authority. This includes border crossings, airports, and key oil and gas fields. The SDF had led the ground campaign to drive out Islamic State from its last footholds in Syria in 2019. The agreement follows years of tension over Kurdish autonomy and is seen as a significant step toward national reconciliation after more than a decade of civil war. Turkey considers the SDF a terrorist group due to its ties to the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), complicating regional dynamics.
