
Syria's transitional president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, announced on Monday that it would take between four and five years to organize presidential elections, marking the first time he has provided a timeline since assuming office last week, Reuters reported.
Sharaa, who previously led the Islamist rebel faction Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which was responsible for the swift offensive that ousted longtime President Bashar Al-Assad in early December, was appointed transitional president on January 30.
"I estimate that the period will be between four to five years until elections because there is a need for a vast infrastructure, and this infrastructure needs to be re-established and establishing it needs time," Sharaa was quoted as having told Syrian TV in an interview aired on Monday.
He emphasized that authorities must first consolidate data on Syria’s population to update electoral records, warning that "without this matter, any elections held will be doubted."
Sharaa stated that Syria would adhere to international norms regarding transitional periods, including the role of a president during such a time. These norms, he said would guide the country toward "ultimately go[ing] to an elected presidency and an elected authority."
However, he did not clarify which international standards he had consulted in determining the proposed timeline.
In December, Sharaa estimated that drafting a new constitution could take up to three years.
HTS was once a part of Al-Nusra Front, which is Syria’s Al-Qaeda branch, and is labeled a terrorist organization by many Western governments.
HTS later broke off from Al-Nusra Front and prioritized combatting Al-Qaeda as well as the Islamic State (ISIS), of which Sharaa was critical, describing its self-proclaimed caliphate in parts of Syria and Iraq as "illegitimate".
Shortly after Sharaa came to power, the US decided to remove the $10 million bounty on his head, but did not lift the sanctions that have been imposed on Syria during its civil war.