Syria president names last members to finalize first post-Assad parliament

The first Parliament in Syria's post-Assad era took shape Wednesday with the release of a list of 70 legislators picked up by interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa.

The inauguration of the new Parliament shows the country is moving ahead with drafting laws as the nation works on recovering from decades of iron-fist rule under the Assad family and a deadly war that has killed about half a million people.

The head of Syria's electoral committee, Mohammed Taha al-Ahmad, told reporters that the new 210-member legislature will hold its first meeting Monday. Members will be sworn in and the Parliament's presidential council will be elected.

The list of 70 legislators picked by al-Sharaa included 15 women, which raised the number of female members in the legislature to 22.

Syria held the first phase of its parliamentary elections in October while excluding the southern province of Sweida, which is controlled by Druze gunmen opposed to the central government. The vote at the time also excluded northeast Syria, which was under Kurdish control.

A vote in northeast Syria was held in May after government forces took control of the area during deadly clashes early this year. No date has been set yet for a vote in Sweida, but two representatives for the predominantly Druze region were among the names released by al-Sharaa on Wednesday.

The Parliament will have a 30-month term and work on a new elections law while preparing the ground for a popular vote in the next elections, according to al-Ahmad.

Syria had been without a Parliament since the December 2024 offensive by insurgents, led by al-Sharaa's now defunct Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, that ended the Assad family's five-decade dynasty.