Autonomous Administration Refuses to Implement Decisions of New Syrian Govt

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on March 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (6th-R) and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Sahibani (6th-L) posing for a picture with the new transitional government in Damascus. (SANA / AFP)
A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on March 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (6th-R) and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Sahibani (6th-L) posing for a picture with the new transitional government in Damascus. (SANA / AFP)
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Autonomous Administration Refuses to Implement Decisions of New Syrian Govt

A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on March 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (6th-R) and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Sahibani (6th-L) posing for a picture with the new transitional government in Damascus. (SANA / AFP)
A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on March 30, 2025, shows Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa (6th-R) and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Sahibani (6th-L) posing for a picture with the new transitional government in Damascus. (SANA / AFP)

The Kurdish Autonomous Administration in northeastern Syria criticized on Sunday the new Syrian transitional government, saying it does not reflect the diversity in the country.

Interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced the new 23-minister government lineup on Saturday, vowing to rebuild a “strong and stable state” that was destroyed by years of war.

The cabinet included Yarub Badr, an Alawite who was named transportation minister, while Amgad Badr, who belongs to the Druze community, will lead the agriculture ministry.

Hind Kabawat, a Christian woman and part of the previous opposition to Assad who worked for interfaith tolerance and women's empowerment, was appointed as social affairs and labor minister.

The autonomous authorities said the new government failed in “providing fair and real representation” for all the Syrian people, saying it will not abide by its decisions.

In a statement, it said the new cabinet “was very similar to its predecessors in that it does not take into account the diversity in the country.”

“It won’t be able to run the country smoothly and help it end its crisis. Rather, it will deepen the crisis and fail in addressing the problems that caused it in the first place,” it charged.

“Insistence on repeating past mistakes will harm the Syrians and will not lead to the launch of a comprehensive political process that can reach solutions to pending problems,” it went on to say.

The statement called for an end to “policies of marginalization and elimination,” urging that Syrians of all segments, religions and sects be represented.

The government announcement was welcomed by the Syrian people, Arab and international community, which has offered to help the country in its reconstruction process.



Israeli Military Says it Struck Hamas Member in Southern Syria

FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo
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Israeli Military Says it Struck Hamas Member in Southern Syria

FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A cat stands next to a damaged telephone booth in Hamidiyeh district in the central city of Homs July 1, 2012. REUTERS/Yazen Homsy/File Photo

The Israeli military said on Sunday that it struck a Hamas member in southern Syria's Mazraat Beit Jin, days after Israel carried out its first airstrikes in the country in nearly a month.

Hamas did not immediately comment on the strike.

Israel said on Tuesday it hit weapons belonging to the government in retaliation for the firing of two projectiles towards Israel for the first time under the country's new leadership. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz held Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa accountable.

Damascus in response said reports of the shelling were unverified, reiterating that Syria does not pose a threat to any regional party.

A little known group named "Martyr Muhammad Deif Brigades," an apparent reference to Hamas' military leader who was killed in an Israeli strike in 2024, reportedly claimed responsibility for the shelling. Reuters, however, could not independently verify the claim.

Israel and Syria have recently engaged in direct talks to calm tensions, marking a significant development in ties between states that have been on opposite sides of conflict in the Middle East for decade.