Ahmed al-Shara, the leader of the rebel coalition that swept to power in Syria last month, has been declared the country’s interim president, a role that will see him navigate a time of untold change for a fractured nation.
Under Mr. al-Shara’s stewardship, Syria’s interim government will now face a delicate political transition after the overthrow of the dictatorship led by President Bashar al-Assad.
Among the many challenges he faces are uniting a complex patchwork of rebel groups, gaining control over multiple regions under the sway of powerful factions and rebuilding relations with the international community to undo crippling sanctions.
How did Mr. al-Shara rise to power?
Formerly known by his nom de guerre, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, Mr. al-Shara spearheaded an offensive last month that ousted Mr. al-Assad and ended the Assad family’s iron grip on the country, which had lasted more than five decades.
Mr. al-Shara was the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an Islamist rebel group once linked to Al Qaeda. His faction controlled most of Idlib Province, in northwestern Syria, during a long stalemate in the country’s civil war, which dragged on for nearly 14 years.
In late November, Mr. al-Shara launched the most significant challenge to Mr. al-Assad’s rule in a decade, capturing territory across several provinces without facing much resistance from the government’s military forces or from their powerful international allies Russia and Iran.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and other armed factions in the rebel coalition would be disbanded and integrated into the fledgling government’s armed forces, a spokesman for the coalition, Col. Hassan Abdel Ghani, announced on Wednesday. He also declared that the Constitution had been nullified and that the legislature and army formed under the Assad regime had been dissolved, according to the Syrian state news agency, SANA.
It was not immediately clear whether there was a broad consensus among armed groups across Syria about Mr. al-Shara’s appointment as interim president. It was also unclear how long the transitional period would last.
What is the new leader’s background?
Born in Saudi Arabia, Mr. al-Shara is the child of Syrian exiles, according to Arab media reports. In the late 1980s, his family moved back to Syria, and in 2003, he went to neighboring Iraq to join Al Qaeda and fight the American occupation. There, he spent several years in a U.S. prison, according to American officials.
Mr. al-Shara later emerged in Syria around the start of the civil war and formed the Nusra Front, an affiliate of Al Qaeda. He eventually broke ties with Al Qaeda, and the Nusra Front evolved into Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
After sweeping to power in Syria last month, Mr. al-Shara has seemed to be trying to distance himself from his militant past, ditching his combat fatigues and donning a suit and tie as he welcomed a roster of foreign diplomats to Damascus, the Syrian capital. By eschewing global jihadist ambitions, Mr. al-Shara apparently hopes to gain international legitimacy, which would help to attract much-needed sanctions relief and funds for rebuilding.
There are signs that the strategy may be working.
Last month, the U.S. government — which has designated Hayat Tahrir al-Sham a terrorist organization — dropped a $10 million bounty on Mr. al-Shara’s head.
Washington has also eased some restrictions on humanitarian aid to Syria, and the European Union announced this week that it would lift some sanctions. Those moves should give Mr. al-Shara’s transitional government some breathing room as it attempts to build a more stable future.
What challenges does Syria face?
Mr. al-Shara has laid out lofty goals, including rebuilding state institutions, ridding the government of corruption and cronyism, and freeing the country from the torture and repression that came to define the Assad regime.
“What Syria needs today is greater than ever before,” he said in remarks published by SANA on Wednesday. “Just as we were determined to liberate it in the past, our duty now is to commit to rebuilding and advancing it.”
But many Syrians have questioned whether Mr. al-Shara can deliver on the ambitious promises and also reconcile his former rebel group’s militant Islamist roots with a largely secular state. Under the watchful eye of the international community, Mr. al-Shara has sought repeatedly to reassure minority communities, and he has pledged to build a country that is tolerant of other beliefs.
