Syria appoints rebel leader as interim president

Ahmed al-Sharaa is named interim president of Syria, following state media reports. The Assad-era army, security forces, and parliament are dissolved, and the constitution is suspended. The Baath Party is also disbanded. Al-Sharaa, former leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), must form a transitional council for a new constitution. HTS, which led the rapid offensive overturning president Assad’s rule in December, was previously aligned with al-Qaeda but has since become more moderate after cutting ties in 2016. Assad fled to Russia, and the civil war, starting in 2011, has resulted in at least 600,000 deaths over 12 years.