Syria's Sharaa declared president for transition, consolidating his power

Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa was declared president for a transitional phase and the constitution suspended on Wednesday, in moves that tighten his hold on power less than two months after he led a campaign that toppled Bashar al-Assad.

Sharaa was also empowered to form a temporary legislative council for a transitional period, according to the announcements made during a meeting of armed groups in Damascus.

Sharaa, whose group was once an al-Qaeda affiliate, has been de facto leader since leading the offensive that deposed Assad after more than 13 years of civil war.

The decisions, which emerged from a conference that was not publicly announced, did not say when the new legislative body might be picked, or provide any new details for a timeline for the transition.

Sharaa has pledged to embark on a political transition including a national conference, an inclusive government, and eventual elections, which he has said could take up to four years to hold.

"We announce that Leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has assumed the presidency of the country in the transitional phase," said Colonel Hassan Abdel Ghani, spokesperson for the Military Operations Command, which led the offensive that toppled Assad.

"He will carry out the duties of the presidency of the Syrian Arab Republic, and represent it in international forums," he said in statements reported by state news agency SANA.

The new legislative council would carry out its tasks until a new constitution is adopted. The parliament elected under Assad last year was formally dissolved.

Reiterating previously declared decisions, Abdel Ghani also announced the dissolution of Assad's Baath Party and his state security apparatus, and that rebel groups which fought him were to be dissolved and merged into the state.

The announcements came at a meeting declared "The Conference for Announcing the Victory of the Syrian Revolution". It was attended by ministers from the interim government appointed by Sharaa's Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group in December.

Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Center said the "announcement is a raw translation of his newfound power and military control of great parts of Syria including the capital".

It "does not reflect the political, religious and ethnic diversity of Syria", he added.

Apparent celebratory gunfire could be heard in central Damascus soon after the announcements.