Damascus: Army to Rely on Volunteers, Discharge Tens of Thousands of Reservists

General Abdul Karim Mahmoud Ibrahim, Chief of the General Staff of the Syrian Army, visits forces operating in the countryside of Hama, Idlib and Deir Ez-Zor on the occasion of Eid al-Adha. (Ministry of Defense)
General Abdul Karim Mahmoud Ibrahim, Chief of the General Staff of the Syrian Army, visits forces operating in the countryside of Hama, Idlib and Deir Ez-Zor on the occasion of Eid al-Adha. (Ministry of Defense)
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Damascus: Army to Rely on Volunteers, Discharge Tens of Thousands of Reservists

General Abdul Karim Mahmoud Ibrahim, Chief of the General Staff of the Syrian Army, visits forces operating in the countryside of Hama, Idlib and Deir Ez-Zor on the occasion of Eid al-Adha. (Ministry of Defense)
General Abdul Karim Mahmoud Ibrahim, Chief of the General Staff of the Syrian Army, visits forces operating in the countryside of Hama, Idlib and Deir Ez-Zor on the occasion of Eid al-Adha. (Ministry of Defense)

The Syrian government said that it intends to rely on volunteers and discharge tens of thousands of reservists by the end of this year.
“Tens of thousands will be discharged by the end of the current year, and the same next year, while maintaining combat readiness and acting in the interests of the people,” Major General Ahmed Sleiman told Syrian state television late Wednesday.
Sources in Damascus told Asharq Al-Awsat that the military establishment began six months ago to implement a plan aimed at restructuring the army, under the direct supervision of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.
As a result of the long war, the army has suffered from disorder, corruption and lack of human resources, the sources added.
According to Sleiman, discharging the reservists will take place based on a three-phase plan beginning next month and until the end of October 2025.
He added that reserve service will be reduced to a maximum of two years in the final phase.
Sleiman said the decision aimed to “achieve an advanced army that relies on voluntary enlistment, through a new volunteer contract,” according to which anyone who has completed five years of service and does not wish to continue will be discharged.
He also stressed that these measures are “an internal matter, and are not messages directed to any side, nor a preparation for war, but rather a necessary change.”
The Syrian army is composed of three main groups: soldiers who enlist voluntarily, those conscripted as part of compulsory military service, and reservists who have completed their service but can be summoned for further duty at any time.

 



UN Seeks $6 Billion to Ease Hunger Catastrophe in Sudan

Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
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UN Seeks $6 Billion to Ease Hunger Catastrophe in Sudan

Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese, who fled the Zamzam camp, gather near the town of Tawila in North Darfur on February 14, 2025. (AFP)

UN officials on Monday asked for $6 billion for Sudan this year from donors to help ease what they called the world's worst ever hunger catastrophe and the mass displacement of people brought on by civil war.

The UN appeal represents a rise of more than 40% from last year's for Sudan at a time when aid budgets around the world are under strain, partly due to a pause in funding announced by US President Donald Trump last month that has affected life-saving programs across the globe.

The UN says the funds are necessary because the impact of the 22-month war between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) - that has already displaced a fifth of its population and stoked severe hunger among around half its population - looks set to worsen.

World Food Program chief Cindy McCain, speaking via video to a room full of diplomats in Geneva, said: "Sudan is now the epicenter of the world's largest and most severe hunger crisis ever."

She did not provide figures, but Sudan's total population currently stands at about 48 million people. Among previous world famines, the Bengal Famine of 1943 claimed between 2 million and 3 million lives, according to several estimates, while millions are believed to have died in the Great Chinese Famine of 1959-61.

Famine conditions have been reported in at least five locations in Sudan, including displacement camps in Darfur, a UN statement said, and this was set to worsen with continued fighting and the collapse of basic services.

"This is a humanitarian crisis that is truly unprecedented in its scale and its gravity and it demands a response unprecedented in scale and intent," UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said.

One of the famine-stricken camps was attacked by the RSF last week as the group tries to tighten its grip on its Darfur stronghold.

While some aid agencies say they have received waivers from Washington to provide aid in Sudan, uncertainty remains on the extent of coverage for providing famine relief.

The UN plan aims to reach nearly 21 million people within the country, making it the most ambitious humanitarian response so far for 2025, and requires $4.2 billion - the rest being for those displaced by the conflict.