DAMASCUS: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Wednesday finalised the formation of the country´s first post-Assad-era parliament, which is set to hold its first session next week in a step seen as a test for the country´s transition.
After toppling longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024 after more than 13 years of civil war, the new authorities dissolved Syria´s rubber-stamp legislature and adopted a temporary constitutional declaration to cover a five-year transition period.
In a process that began in October 2025 and has been criticised as undemocratic, local committees appointed by the electoral commission -- which was appointed by Sharaa -- began selecting two-thirds of the 210 members of a new parliament, with the president to appoint the remaining third.
Mohammad Taha al-Ahmad, head of the electoral committee, read out the names of the 70 members appointed by presidential decree, which he said included relatives of civil war “martyrs, and survivors of imprisonment and of chemical attacks”.
They also include “academics and dignitaries”, he said, adding that the aim was to “represent the various segments of Syrian society and embody the unity of the nation”.
The parliament´s first session will be held next Monday, he said, adding that the body, which has a renewable two-and-a-half-year mandate, will form a committee to draft a constitution that must “meet the aspirations of Syrian society”.
Sharaa´s appointees include 15 women, and 13 people who were imprisoned under the former authorities.
