A Kurdish-led Syrian group, which governs northeastern Syria, rejected the new constitutional framework announced by the Islamist-led authorities in Damascus on Friday, urging a complete rewrite of the document.
The declaration, issued on Thursday, aims to lay the foundation for a five-year interim period under President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a Sunni Islamist who led the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in December, ending a 14-year civil war. The framework emphasizes Islamic law and guarantees freedom of expression, but the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) argued it falls short in safeguarding the rights of Syria’s diverse communities.
In Geneva, the United Nations’ special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, called on the new authorities in Damascus to form an inclusive transitional government. Pedersen also demanded an investigation into recent sectarian violence, which has resulted in hundreds of deaths.
“Syria is at a critical juncture,” Pedersen said in a statement, marking the 14th anniversary of the uprising against Assad that spiraled into a full-scale civil war.
Throughout the conflict, Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria established an autonomous system after years of being sidelined under the Assad regime. They now fear that the new leadership in Damascus will reverse many of the rights they gained, such as the use of the Kurdish language in schools and the appointment of women to high-ranking government positions.
In a statement on Friday, the SDC rejected Sharaa’s constitutional declaration, criticizing it as “a new form of authoritarianism” that centralizes power in the executive. The council called for a revision of the document, urging a more equitable distribution of power and a decentralized governance model.
“Any constitutional declaration must be the result of a genuine national consensus, not the imposition of a single party,” the council stated.
The SDC is the political arm of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which signed an agreement with the Damascus government on Monday to integrate into Syria’s new state institutions. Under the deal, the SDF will hand over control of key border crossings, oil fields, and an airport to the government by the end of the year. However, the agreement does not specify how the SDF’s military forces will be incorporated into Syria’s defense ministry.
Pedersen expressed hope that Sharaa’s declaration would help guide Syria toward the restoration of the rule of law and a peaceful transition. However, he acknowledged the challenges posed by recent sectarian violence in coastal regions, which has been blamed on fighters aligned with the government.
Pedersen called for an independent investigation into the violence, warning that ongoing distrust and fear could jeopardize the entire transition process.
