The former ruling party of Syria, Baath, is gone.
The party has ruled the country for decades until it was overthrown, together with former Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, on December 8, after the opposition faction marched to Damascus. Announcement on Wednesday that the party will be dissolved only formalized that procedure.
But it was not the only group that the authorities dissolved – all armed fractions were also officially dissolved, and the plan was to integrate the former opposition forces into a new government structure.
Among the dissolution of the group was Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a group led by de facto ruler of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, who took over the vague temporary role of the President of the country on Wednesday.
This move is not surprising that members of the transitional government of Syria have been signaling for weeks that HTS and other groups will dissolve. The breakup of the Syrian party Baath is a strong symbolic moment after more than five decades of one -party.
What did the new Syrian leaders announce?
Syrian de facto leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, was Officially appointed President For the transitional phase and the constitution of the country, adopted in 2012, they were suspended.
Different armed faction in the country, which marched to Damascus and took the old regime, were dissolved, with the intention of absorbing them into official state institutions.
“All military fractions are dissolved … and integrated into state institutions,” said the State News Agency, Sana, reported Hassan Abdel Ghani, a new government spokeswoman. He announced the “dissolution of the army descended regime” and the infamous security agencies, as well as the long -standing Baath party.
What is the Baath Party?
The Arab Socialist Baath Party would give foreigners to the foreigners-two Syrians, Michel Aflaq and Salah al-Din al-Bitar, in 1947 as a pan-Arab nationalist and socialist party. The Syrian branch was one element of this Pan-Arab regional party, but later became a military dictatorship focused on Syria. The Iraqi branch also became a military dictatorship under Saddam Hussein.
In Syria, the Baingists came to power in a 1963 national hit – the same year when the party came to power in Iraq. Three years later in-1966-the parties led by Salah Jadid and Hafez Al-Assad, the then Baatist General, and at the same time the father of the recently overthrown President Bashar al-AssadHe organized an internal coup to overthrow Aflaq and al-Bitars.
In 1970, Al-Assad mounted another national blow to take on a unique control over the party, which he led until his death in 2000. Since then, his son Bashar took the cloak and had fun until December 8, 2024, when he led on December 8, 2024.
What is the dissolution of the Baath Party means for Syria?
The breakup of the Baath Party in Syria was widely considered necessary.
Radwan Ziadeh, Senior Analyst at the Washington DC Arab Center, research organization, said These announcements signal “the transition of power into civilian hands.”
The party was closely related to the old regime and therefore had a little perspective for any future in Syria after the revolution. It was also considered to be the central ideological pillar of government management that tolerated a little disagreement, closing and killing hundreds of thousands of opponents. Indeed, in the early hours of December 8, after Al-Assad fled to Moscow, the Syrians executed the Baath Party Office and for the Flags of the Party.
“There is no future for them considering their bloodshed,” said Elia Ayoub, researcher and author of Biltena Hauntologies.
Why did HTS dissolve?
After the Arab spring uprising in 2011 turned into a civil war, the opposition of Al-Assad was broken into many groups.
Jabhat al-Nusra was an offshoot al-Qaede that eventually broke with a group and became Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
He established the authority of the Syrian northeast, where he applied his conservative rule from his base in Idlib.
At the end of 2024, he conducted surgery on the re-Syrian cities of-Aleppo, HAMA, HOMS and Damascus-Ziz al-Assad regime. After the regime fell, al-Sharaa became a de facto ruler of Syria, meeting with foreign delegates and reputors.
Under al-Sharaom, HTS has become De facto ruling party In Syria and established a temporary government that was predominantly made up of local government officials led by Idlib.
However, the group has long reported on the intention of dissolving so that a new government could be formed.
The middle to long -term goal of the new administration is to form a state with its own institutions. The aforementioned plan is to connect HTS and other rebel fractions into the appropriate security service that will do military, general security and border control and police forces.
Is there a time line to form a new government and state institutions?
It’s not firm.
Al-Sharaa has previously committed to monitoring the political transition of Syria, including the posture of national dialogue with different stakeholders, forming an inclusive government and at the end of the election. However, he said it could take four years before the election could be held.
What happens next?
Al-Sharaa will form a temporary legislative council that will oversee the transitional phase of the country until the new constitution is adopted. Who will be announced members of the new Council.
Impatience grows among some Syrians. One of the criticisms coming from Syrian civil society towards the new administration was her failure to communicate or meet the family of thousands of people who disappeared under the Al-Assad regime.
“There is still no real plan and so far it seems that they have no intention of serious responsibility for [al-]Assad and the crime of the regime, “Ayoub said.
“Lack of responsibility in the sense that it does not work too much or in some cases that interfere with the procedure of finding evidence when it enters [to issues of accountability, such as] Mass graves are worried because many hundreds of thousands, if not more, will be left in a recess of what happened to loved ones. “
What was the reaction to this move?
Mixed.
Although many Syrians and observers expected the dissolution of the HTS Baath Party, there are concerns for the representation and establishment of a solid weather strip for the appearance of a new state.
The audience present in the announcement on Wednesday was superior to military figures. Although few would be surprised that Al-Sharaa received the title of president during the transitional phase, some commentators still criticized the lack of a transparent or any democratic process.
Tonight, the confirmation of all the measures that the HTS government has taken from his arrival to power: to strengthen and consolidate the dominance of HTS over the state and its institutions, establishing a new authoritarian state with neoliberal economic orientation.
– Joseph Daher (@Josephdaher19) 29 January 2025
Furthermore, there are questions about how al-Sharaa and temporary administration will bring together a diverse group of armed fractions now that there is no unique enemy in Al-Assad.
Among the main fractions that have not yet agreed to join the new AL-SHARA project are Syrian democratic forces under the leadership of the US (SDF) under the leadership in the US, which fought against the Syrian national army (dream) supported in Turkey (dream) in northern Syria.
However, there is also room for some optimism given the difficult 14-year period Syria withstanding from the Arab Spring 2011, analysts say.
“Emphasizing that this transitional period-and temporary al-Sharaa is the president of the transitional period, widely speaking in the context of Syria, more positively than negative,” Ayoub said.
