Syrian leader signs temporary constitution putting country under Islamist rule

Syria’s interim president signed a temporary constitution on Thursday that leaves the country under Islamist rule for five years during a transitional phase.

The nation’s interim rulers have struggled to exert their authority across much of Syria since the Islamist former insurgent group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, led a lightning insurgency that overthrew longtime president Bashar Assad in December.

Former HTS leader Ahmad al-Sharaa is now the country’s interim president — a decision that was announced after a meeting of the armed groups that took part in the offensive against Mr Assad.

At the same meeting, the groups agreed to repeal the country’s old constitution and said a new one would be drafted.

Abdulhamid Al-Awak, one of the seven members of the committee Mr al-Sharaa tasked to draft the temporary constitution, told a news conference on Thursday that it would maintain some provisions from the previous one, including the stipulation that the head of state has to be a Muslim, and Islamic law is the main source of jurisprudence.

But Mr Al-Awak, a constitutional law expert who teaches at Mardin Artuklu University in Turkey, also said that the temporary constitution included provisions that enshrine freedom of expression and the media.

The constitution would “balance between social security and freedom” during Syria’s shaky political situation, he said.

A new committee to draft a permanent constitution would be formed, but it was unclear if it would be more inclusive of Syria’s political, religious and ethnic groups.

Mr Al-Sharaa reached a landmark pact with the US-backed Kurdish-led authorities in northeastern Syria on Monday, including a ceasefire and a merging of their armed forces with the central government’s security agencies.

Human rights groups say that hundreds of civilians — mostly from the Alawite minority sect to which Mr Assad belongs — were killed in retaliatory attacks by factions in the counteroffensive.

A key goal of the interim constitution was to give a timeline for the country’s political transition out of its interim phase. In December, Mr Al-Sharaa said that it could take up to three years to rewrite Syria’s constitution and up to five years to organise and hold elections.

Mr Al-Sharaa appointed a committee to draft the new constitution after Syria held a national dialogue conference last month, which called for announcing a temporary constitution and holding an interim parliamentary election. Critics said that the hastily-organised conference was not inclusive of Syria’s different ethnic and sectarian groups or civil society.

The US and Europe have been hesitant to lift harsh sanctions imposed on Syria during Mr Assad’s rule until they are convinced that the new leaders will create an inclusive political system and protect minorities.

Mr Al-Sharaa and regional governments have been urging them to reconsider, fearing that the country’s crumbling economy could bring further instability.