In a conference convened today by Ahmad al-Sharaa (Abu Muhammad al-Jowlani, leader of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham), it was widely expected that al-Sharaa would announce the dissolution of all military factions. Unfortunately, no live or recorded broadcast of the entire conference appears to have been released so far.
However, a summary statement of the conference has been produced, which I translate below. The statement notably announces the official dissolution of the former regime’s parliament, military and security apparatuses, outlaws the Ba‘ath Party and parties that were part of the ‘National Progressive Front’ it led, mandates the dissolution of all military factions, and appoints al-Sharaa as president of Syria for the transitional stage (a role he has already been de facto exercising).
In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
After decades of oppression and dictatorship practised by the criminal Assad regime against the Syrian people, and after the heavy sacrifices given by the great Syrian revolution’s heroes over 14 years, during which the defiant people offered hundreds of thousands of martyrs, wounded and detainees, and millions of displaced in a heroic epic battle that lasted from March 2011 until it was crowned with victory reinforced by the grace and support of God Almighty, on the morning of 8 December 2024, we in the Military Operations Administration congratulate our great Syrian people on the victory of their blessed revolution that constitutes the legitimacy that speaks in their name. On this basis, we announce the following:
1. The victory of the great Syrian revolution, and considering 8 December to be a national day every year.
2. Cancelling the implementation of the 2012 constitution, and stopping the implementation of all the emergency laws.
3. Dissolving the People’s Council that was formed in the time of the bygone regime, and the committees derived from it.