State bodies

Ministry of Defence

Syria's Defence Ministry, headed by Murhaf Abu Qasra; former armed factions were integrated under it from 2025.

Also known as

  • Defense Ministry
  • MoD

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Supported by independent sources

Headed by Murhaf Abu Qasra since December 2024. 1 2 According to the UN Commission of Inquiry, entire former HTS, National Liberation Front and Syrian National Army factions, including leaders subjected to sanctions for human rights abuses, were integrated under the ministry with their membership and reporting lines largely intact. 3

Human Rights Watch describes the March 2025 operation on the coast as centrally coordinated and overseen by the ministry. 4 Read the article

People and bodies linked to it

LeaderOfficialOfficialSub-unitSub-unitSub-unitSub-unitLinked entityMurhaf Abu QasraMohammed al-JassimOmar MohammedJaftashi62nd Division(Sultan Suleiman Shah …76th Division (HamzaDivision)400th DivisionOthman BrigadeNational Universityfor Defence SciencesMinistry of Defence
Legend
  • Supported by independent sources
  • According to testimony
  • Published allegation
  • Person
  • Organisation

Sources

  1. Press Syria authorities name HTS military chief as transitional defence minister — Al-Monitor (AFP), December 31, 2024
  2. Official record Syrian, Jordanian military chiefs discuss defense cooperation (Defense Minister Maj. Gen. Murhaf Abu Qasra) — SANA, September 29, 2026
  3. Official record Report A/HRC/61/62 (covering 8 December 2024 – 31 January 2026), including the government’s note verbale of 28 January 2026 — UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, March 12, 2026
  4. Human-rights organisation “Are you Alawi?”: Identity-based killings during Syria’s transition — Human Rights Watch, September 23, 2025
  5. Press Syria reshuffles military leadership as a controversial commander takes center stage — Alhurra, August 7, 2026
  6. Press Syria appoints some foreign Islamist fighters to its military, sources say — Reuters (via Arab News), December 30, 2024
  7. Official record Violence in the coastal and western central regions of Syria, January–March 2025 (A/HRC/59/CRP.4) — UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, August 11, 2025
  8. Press Syrian forces massacred 1,500 Alawites. The chain of command led to Damascus. (special report by Maggie Michael; updated 1 July 2025) — Reuters, June 30, 2025
  9. Press Defense Minister: National Defense University boosts training and specialization — SANA, July 5, 2026