New York Times: Rebuilding the Army Is One of the Biggest Challenges Facing al-Sharaa’s Government

Welat TV – Erbil

The American newspaper The New York Times reported that Syria’s transitional government is facing one of its greatest challenges at this stage: rebuilding the army, one year after the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

In an in-depth report published on Friday, December 12, 2025, the newspaper wrote: “When factions in Syria came to power a year ago, one of their first actions was to dissolve all of the country’s military forces, which for five decades had been used as tools of repression and brutality under the rule of Bashar al-Assad and his family.”

It added: “Now, one of the biggest challenges facing the nascent government is rebuilding those forces—an effort that will be critical to unifying a country that remains deeply divided.”

Exclusion of Components and Sects

The report noted that to achieve this goal, Syria’s new leaders are following a similar approach to the one used in forming the government itself, in which President Ahmad al-Sharaa relied on a narrow circle of loyalists.

According to multiple soldiers, commanders, and analysts, the new military leadership structure favors former fighters from al-Sharaa’s previous opposition group, even over individuals who may have greater experience.Religious minorities have not yet been incorporated into the army, despite Syria’s religious and ethnic diversity and the fact that the country has already witnessed waves of sectarian violence.

According to The New York Times, Syria’s Ministry of Defense is applying some of the same training methods—including religious instruction—that al-Sharaa’s former group used to become the strongest among the factions that fought the Assad regime during the Syrian civil war.

The newspaper said it conducted interviews with around 20 soldiers, commanders, and new recruits in Syria, who discussed military training and expressed concerns. Most spoke on condition of anonymity, as the Ministry of Defense prohibits soldiers from speaking to the media

. Many soldiers, commanders, and analysts said that some government rules have little to do with military readiness.

Smoking Ban

The new leadership has shown particular strictness on certain issues, such as banning soldiers from smoking while on duty. However, in other respects, soldiers said the training appeared disconnected from the needs of a modern military.

In the spring of last year, when a 30-year-old former fighter arrived in Aleppo province in northern Syria to undergo military training, instructors told about 1,400 new recruits that smoking was prohibited. The former fighter said one instructor searched him and confiscated several packs of cigarettes hidden in his vest.

According to one former rebel—described as a thin man who smoked heavily while speaking in Mare’, a town in Aleppo province—the ban prompted dozens of recruits to resign immediately, while many others were expelled for ignoring it. After three weeks, only 600 recruits completed the training.

Islamic Instruction

The same speaker said he was surprised by other aspects of the training, noting that the first week was devoted entirely to Islamic instruction, including “a two-and-a-half-hour lecture on the birth of the Prophet Muhammad.”

Soldiers and commanders noted that the religious training reflects the conservative Sunni ideology adopted by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the former opposition faction led by al-Sharaa when it controlled Idlib in northwestern Syria.

This raises questions about how welcoming such an army would be to religious and ethnic minorities, and whether it truly represents Syria’s diverse society.

In this context, a Syrian defense official—speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly—said the government has not yet decided whether to allow minorities to enlist, warning that excluding them could exacerbate sectarian tensions that have already erupted in several waves of deadly violence over the past year.

Numerous soldiers, commanders, and recruits said Syria’s leaders are relying on a small circle of trusted associates from HTS to lead and shape the new army, rather than turning to those with the greatest experience, including thousands of officers who defected under the Assad regime.

The Syrian Ministry of Defense did not respond to a detailed list of questions or repeated requests for comment, according to the newspaper.

Lack of Expertise

After abolishing the deeply unpopular mandatory conscription system under Assad, the new army began recruiting volunteers and set requirements such as completing ninth grade, physical fitness, and basic literacy. However, fighters who took part in the civil war were incorporated into the army even if they did not meet all criteria, according to several soldiers and commanders.

Former HTS fighters, like many from other factions, have years of experience in guerrilla warfare used to overthrow Assad. However, most never served as officers in a conventional army with multiple branches—such as the navy, air force, and infantry—or within rigid command structures, knowledge considered valuable when rebuilding a national military.

The newspaper noted that the army’s lack of control over its forces and weak discipline have already contributed to outbreaks of sectarian violence, undermining the government’s relations with minorities. Human rights organizations say government forces or allied groups have been implicated in some killings.

Loyalty Over Experience

In this regard, Colonel Ali Abdul Baqi, chief of staff of the 70th Battalion in Damascus—one of the few senior commanders who was not a member of HTS—said that if he were in al-Sharaa’s position, he would have built the new army in the same way. “They will not risk dealing with people they do not know,”

Colonel Abdul Baqi said during an interview in his Damascus office. He had led another faction during the civil war. An officer who defected from Assad’s air force and has now joined the new army said loyalty is the primary criterion for promotion.

As a result, close associates of al-Sharaa and his former group often outrank more experienced former military officers. The defected officer said that many of those who led battalions in the new Syrian air force were unfamiliar with military rank structures.

He added that a more competent commander was appointed only after he and other officers complained, and that this occurred solely due to the specialized nature of the air force.

Two other commanders warned that allowing minorities to join the army after a brutal, sectarian civil war would be like lighting a powder keg.

Others disagreed, arguing that creating an army reflecting Syria’s diversity would build trust among minorities and help prevent sectarian violence.

Integration of the SDF into the Army

In concluding its report, The New York Times said that placing loyalists of President al-Sharaa in leadership positions complicates efforts to integrate the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which control large parts of northeastern Syria and possess a strong internal organizational structure.

These U.S.-backed forces have been negotiating with the government for months over army integration, with little progress to date.