Who is the acting president of Syria?

Ahmad al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, has been appointed to a role similar to that of the Syrian president during the transition period, according to Syrian Military Operations Command spokesman Hassan Abdel Ghani.

"We announce the appointment of Commander Ahmad al-Sharaa as head of state during the transition period. Mr. al-Sharaa will assume the duties of President of the Syrian Arab Republic and represent the country in international forums," the representative of the Syrian Military Operations Command announced.

The Command stated that the President is authorized to establish a temporary legislative council during the transition period, which will operate until the official constitution is promulgated and comes into effect.

In addition, the agency also suspended the constitution, dissolved parliament and disbanded the army of the former government and the previously ruling Arab Socialist Renaissance Party (Baath).

Mr. al-Sharaa's immediate task as the country's top leader is to rebuild a country that has been controlled by different forces in different regions for more than a decade of instability since the 2011 Arab Spring campaign.

Just before being appointed as President, Mr. al-Sharaa said that over the years, Syria has suffered deep economic and social damage, thus requiring great intelligence, redoubled efforts, a sense of responsibility and high determination to rebuild the country.

According to CNN, al-Sharaa became a Syrian fighter in his early 20s. He went to Iraq to fight against the US military in the spring of 2003 and was eventually taken to Camp Bucca, the notorious US-run prison in Iraq that is considered the birthplace of many armed groups.

After escaping from Bucca camp, Mr. al-Sharaa returned to Syria and began fighting against the Assad regime in Syria.

The campaign was supported by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist organization.

In Syria, in 2012, Mr. al-Sharaa founded a militant group called Jabhat al-Nusra (roughly translated: "Victory Front"), which pledged allegiance to the terrorist organization al-Qaeda. However, in 2016, his group split from al-Qaeda and became better known as HTS (Hayat Tahrir al-Sham).

For years, this force has played a role in governing millions of people in Idlib province, northwest Syria.

In late 2024, Mr. al-Sharaa was the leader of the militant group that led the lightning attack that forced former President Bashar al-Assad and the old government apparatus to transfer power.