Syria after Assad: Who joined country's new cabinet of ministers

The new transitional government includes 23 ministers in an expanded cabinet. This is considered a key step towards moving from decades of Assad family rule to improving Syria's relations with Western countries.

It is expected that the government will not have a prime minister, and Sharaa will lead the executive branch.

The new government includes key appointments, such as the appointment of Alawite Yarub Badr as Minister of Transport and Druze Amgad Badr as Minister of Agriculture.

The Minister of Social Affairs and Labor is Hind Kabawat, a Christian and former member of the opposition to Assad, who advocated for interfaith tolerance and the expansion of women's rights and opportunities.

Mohammed Yosr Bernieh was appointed Minister of Finance.

Murhaf Abu Qasra and Asaad al-Shibani remain in their roles as Ministers of Defense and Foreign Affairs, positions they held under the previous transitional government that ruled Syria after the fall of Assad's regime.

Sharaa also announced the creation of a Ministry of Sports and a Ministry of Emergency Situations, appointing Raed al-Saleh, leader of the rescue group known as the White Helmets, as the new Minister of Emergency Situations.

The new Minister of Foreign Affairs is Anas Hasan Khattab, who previously led the General Intelligence Directorate under the transitional administration.

Sharaa stated, "Our country is entering a new historical period on its path to a better future." He added that the new government will reflect creation and change and that the cabinet will focus on reconstructing the country and implementing extensive reforms.

Regime change in Syria

In December, fighters from the Islamic movement Hayat Tahrir al-Sham captured key cities in Syria, including the capital Damascus, and dictator Bashar al-Assad, along with his family, fled to Russia.

In January, Ahmed al-Sharaa was appointed as the interim president and promised to form an inclusive transitional government that would rebuild Syria's shattered state institutions and govern the country until elections, which, according to him, may take up to five years.

Earlier in March, Syria published a constitutional declaration intended to serve as the foundation for the transitional period led by al-Sharaa. The declaration maintains the central role of Islamic law and guarantees women's rights and freedom of expression.

The new government of Syria, led by Sunni Islamists, is under pressure from the West and Arab countries, which demand that it form a government more inclusive of the country's diverse ethnic and religious communities.

This pressure increased following the killings of hundreds of Alawite civilians - members of the minority sect from which the ousted leader Bashar al-Assad hails—during violence on Syria's western coast this month.

Ahmed al-Sharaa did not rule out the possibility that the clashes and killings could ignite a civil war in the country.

Meanwhile, preparations for Syria's presidential election could take up to four years, as it will take that long to create a new Constitution.