On 24 September 2025, Ahmed al-Sharaa became the first Syrian President to address the United Nations General Assembly in six decades. He emphasised Syria’s transformation from an exporter of crises to an opportunity for peace. In a couple of months, Sharaa will complete his first year in power, marked by internal challenges and external engagements.
The fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024 evoked a positive regional and international response, along with concerns regarding the fate of minority communities. Sharaa’s initial manoeuvrings were defined by appropriate political gestures leading to his acceptance by the wider world. However, the domestic disturbances acted as a dampener. He projected an image of a moderate and progressive leader despite his association with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State by vowing to build an inclusive Syria, give a permanent constitution, and hold presidential elections. Replacing his military attire with a suit and tie, he tried to convince the Western countries that Syria would not go the Taliban way as far as the condition of women is concerned.
The gestures were aimed at placating Washington,which had designated Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a terrorist organization in 2018 and had announced a reward of US$10 million on Sharaa. Consequently, the US scrapped the bounty in December 2024 when he became Syria’s new leader and revoked the designation of terrorist organization from HTS last July.
The Trump administration has offered conditional support for the Syrian government and endorsed its call for maintaining unity and territorial integrity, while insisting on inclusivity. Appreciating the favourable outcomes of the fall of Assad in terms of setbacks to Iran and Russia, the US has been instrumental in the planned integration of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) into the national Syrian Armed Forces.
In March, more than 1,400 Alawites and Christians were killed by the government and allied forces in the guise of getting rid of the Assad loyalists, and more than a thousand people of Druze ethnicity have been killed in Damascus, Rif Dimashq, Homs, Hama, Latakia, Aleppo, Tartus, Idlib, Suweida, Daraa, and Deir Ezzor. In the first case, government forces were attacked by the Assad supporters, and in the second case, the government forces intervened in clashes between Druze and Bedouin armed groups. The attacks on Alawites and Druze have been reported frequently.
Other than that, Syria is reeling with the issue of fragmented territorial control; Damascus, Aleppo, Latakia, Hama, Homs, and Tartus in western Syria are controlled by the Syrian armed forces under the Sharaa government, primarily consisting of HTS and other smaller groups that merged in the wake of the fall of Assad. Areas in the north are under the control of the Kurdish SDF supported by the US, while some areas are controlled by the Syrian National Army backed by Türkiye. The Druze factions have established control in the southern Suweida district,and the Alawite loyalists hold sway in the coastal areas. The US forces are stationed near Al-Tanf in the southeast, and the Islamic State controls some areas in Deir al-Zor, Mayadin, and Palmyra in central Syria.
The Sharaa government must ensure territorial integrity and control to ensure stability. Not an easy task considering continued mistrust among the Kurds, Druze, Alawites, and Christian communities, the presence of the rudimentary Islamic State, and the involvement of the US, Israel, and Türkiye. The biggest challenge as far as the minorities are concerned is recognizing their socio-cultural identity, ensuring political rights, and extending economic welfare.
Ensuring the country's financial well-being can help gain legitimacy, but the economy is in shambles and needs robust measures in infrastructure and investment. Syrian GDP per capita has contracted by half, from US$2,952.14 in 2010 to US$847.37 in 2023, and the civil war has decimated the infrastructure.
The government is seeking external support from the Gulf countries, Europe, and the US to revive the economy, and Sharaa has called for lifting the Caesar Act. The US Senate has voted to revoke the act, but it needs to be passed by both houses.
Sharaa had also expressed willingness to join the Abraham Accords under the right circumstances. Earlier, he had rejected it, highlighting Syria’s distinct situation owing to the Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights, and said that the priority is to revive the 1974 UN-brokered Disengagement Agreement. Sharaa has made official visits to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Egypt, Kuwait, Türkiye, France, Russia, the US, and Azerbaijan, signifying his efforts to seek economic support for Syria.
Another predicament for Sharaa is to improve the humanitarian situation in Syria, which has witnessed the world’s largest refugee crisis. More than 14 million Syrians have left Syria since 2011, and around 7.4 million are internally displaced. As per the United Nations data, 70 per cent of Syrians need humanitarian assistance, 90 per cent live below the poverty line, and 6 million Syrians live in the neighbouring Türkiye, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq. Moreover, 7.5 million children are in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Not surprisingly, Syria’s Human Development Index rank has slid from 115th in 2010 to 157th in 2025.
Since the fall of Assad, 850,000 Syrians have reportedly returned, and the transitional government has to deal with challenges pertaining to food and water security, health and education facilities, and basic amenities. The constituencies that led to Sharaa's rise to power are also looking to him with hope and aspirations.
These issues pose serious challenges to the transitional government headed by Sharaa. This would require careful planning and the implementation of policies and programmes to alleviate pressing challenges inclusively. The support of regional and international actors would be necessary if Syria is to address its predicament in the days and months ahead.
The author is an Associate Professor at the Centre for West Asian Studies, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.