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Ministry of Defense (Syria)

Government ministry of Syria

Summary

Government ministry of Syria

Field	Value
name	Ministry of Defense
native_name	{{Script/Arabic	وزارة الدفاع}}
seal	Flag of the Syrian Ministry of Defense.svg
seal_width	250px
seal_caption	Flag of the Ministry of Defense
formed
preceding2
superseding2
jurisdiction	Government of Syria
headquarters	Hay'at al-Arkan, Umayyad Square, Damascus
coordinates
minister1_name	Murhaf Abu Qasra
minister2_pfo
deputyminister2_pfo
chief2_position
parent_agency_type
child1_agency	General Staff of the Army and Armed Forces
child2_agency	Syrian Armed Forces
keydocument1
website

The Ministry of Defense () is a cabinet ministry of Syria, responsible for defense affairs and national security. Murhaf Abu Qasra, Minister of Defense holds the position of Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Armed Forces.

History

Contemporary Syria

Following the fall of the regime of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, caretaker prime minister Mohammed al-Bashir has said the defense ministry would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from the former Ba'athist armed forces.

On 16 July 2025, the Israeli Air Force bombed the entrance and two of its facades to the defense ministry headquarters in Damascus, amid the July 2025 southern Syria clashes.

Incorporation of rebel groups

At the Syrian Revolution Victory Conference, which was held in late January 2025, the Syrian caretaker government announced the dissolution of all security agencies of the Ba'athist regime and all militias established by it. In addition, the Syrian opposition groups are expected to be dissolved and merged into the ministry. The Ministry of Defense later reported that over 70 armed factions across six regions in total agreed to participate in the new administration.

However, one leader from the Syrian National Army indicated that the dissolution of different groups will be done "gradually", while a rebel leader from Daraa Governorate confirmed that the rebel groups had been ordered to disband, but that the "implementation" needs more time until more clarity is provided on how the ministry will ultimately be structured.

As of February 2025, the ministry has formed a committee focused on restructuring and managing assets, as well as a "sub-committee" whose purpose is to determine a new "internal structure" for the armed forces.

Ministers of Defense

[[Arab Kingdom of Syria]] (1918–1920)

No.	Portrait	Name
(Birth–Death)	Term of office	Political party	Government	Ref.	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "
1	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	****
(1875–1925)	9 March 1920	3 May 1920		Independent
2	[[File:Yusuf al-'Azma 7.jpg	80px]]	Yusuf al-Azma
(1883–1920)	3 May 1920	24 July 1920 †		Al-Fatat
3	[[File:Jamil al-Ulshi.jpg	80px]]	Jamil al-Ulshi
(1883–1951)	25 July 1920	30 November 1920		Independent

[[French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon|French Mandate for Syria]] (1920–1946)

No.	Portrait	Name
(Birth–Death)	Term of office	Political party	Government	Ref.	Took office	Left office	Time in office	National Bloc (Syria)}}; "	National Bloc (Syria)}}; "	National Bloc (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	National Bloc (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	National Bloc (Syria)}}; "
1	[[File:Portrait of Shukri al-Quwatli in 1943.jpeg	80px]]	Shukri al-Quwatli
(1891–1967)	21 December 1936	22 March 1938		National Bloc
2	[[File:JamilMardamBeyPortrait.jpg	80px]]	Jamil Mardam Bey
(1895–1960)	22 March 1938	23 February 1939		National Bloc
3	[[File:Mazhar Raslan portrait.jpg	80px]]	Mazhar Raslan
(1886–1948)	23 February 1939	5 April 1939		National Bloc	al-Haffar
4	[[File:Nasuhi al-Bukhari.jpeg	80px]]	Nasuhi al-Bukhari
(1881–1961)	5 April 1939	4 July 1939		Independent
5	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	****
(1879–1942)	20 September 1941	15 March 1942 †		Independent
6	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	****
(1905–1977)	18 April 1942	25 March 1943		Independent
7	[[File:Ata al-Ayyubi.jpg	80px]]	Ata Bey al-Ayyubi
(1874–1950)	25 March 1943	19 August 1943		Independent
(4)	[[File:Nasuhi al-Bukhari.jpeg	80px]]	Nasuhi al-Bukhari
(1881–1961)	19 August 1943	14 October 1944		Independent
(2)	[[File:JamilMardamBeyPortrait.jpg	80px]]	Jamil Mardam Bey
(1895–1960)	14 October 1944	26 August 1945		National Bloc	–
8	[[File:Khalid al-Azm.jpg	80px]]	Khalid al-Azm
(1903–1965)	26 August 1945	30 September 1945		Independent
9	[[File:Saadallah al-Jabiri.jpg	80px]]	Saadallah al-Jabiri
(1892–1947)	30 September 1945	27 April 1946		National Bloc

[[First Syrian Republic]] and [[Second Syrian Republic]] (1946–1958)

No.	Portrait	Name
(Birth–Death)	Term of office	Political party	Government	Ref.	Took office	Left office	Time in office	National Bloc (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	National Party (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Arab Socialist Movement}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	People's Party (Syria)}}; "	People's Party (Syria)}}; "	Military rule}}; "	Military rule}}; "	People's Party (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	People's Party (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	People's Party (Syria)}}; "	Independent politician}}; "	Independent politician}}; "
1	[[File:NabihAlAzmah.jpg	80px]]	Nabih al-Azma
(1886–1964)	27 April 1946	17 June 1946		National Bloc
2	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	Ahmad al-Sharabati
(1905–1975)	17 June 1946	23 May 1948		Independent
–
3	[[File:JamilMardamBeyPortrait.jpg	80px]]	Jamil Mardam Bey
(1895–1960)	23 August 1948	12 December 1948		National Party	–
4	[[File:Khalid al-Azm.jpg	80px]]	Khalid al-Azm
(1903–1965)	12 December 1948	17 April 1949		Independent
5	[[File:Husni al-Zaiim.jpg	80px]]	Husni al-Za'im
(1897–1949)	17 April 1949	1 July 1949		Independent
6	[[File:Atfeh.jpg	80px]]	Abdullah Atfeh
(1897–1976)	1 July 1949	24 December 1949		Independent
7	[[File:Fawzi Selu.jpg	80px]]	Fawzi Selu
(1905–1972)	24 December 1949	28 December 1949		Independent
8	[[File:Akram Hourani.jpg	80px]]	Akram al-Hawrani
(1911–1966)	28 December 1949	4 June 1950		Arab Party Movement
(7)	[[File:Fawzi Selu.jpg	80px]]	Fawzi Selu
(1905–1972)	4 June 1950	13 November 1951		Independent	–
9	[[File:Zaki Al-Khatib.jpg	80px]]	Zaki al-Khatib
(1887–1961)	13 November 1951	28 November 1951		People's Party
10	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	Maarouf al-Dawalibi
(1909–2004)	28 November 1951	29 November 1951		People's Party
(7)	[[File:Fawzi Selu.jpg	80px]]	Fawzi Selu
(1905–1972)	2 December 1951	19 July 1953		Military
11	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	Raf'at Khankan
(1903–1970)	19 July 1953	1 March 1954		Military
(10)	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	Maarouf al-Dawalibi
(1909–2004)	1 March 1954	19 June 1954		People's Party
12	[[File:Said al-Ghazzi.jpg	80px]]	Said al-Ghazzi
(1893–1967)	19 June 1954	3 November 1954		Independent
13	[[File:Rashad Barmada.jpg	80px]]	Rashad Barmada
(1893–1967)	3 November 1954	13 February 1955		People's Party
(4)	[[File:Khalid al-Azm.jpg	80px]]	Khalid al-Azm
(1903–1965)	13 February 1955	13 September 1955		Independent
(13)	[[File:Rashad Barmada.jpg	80px]]	Rashad Barmada
(1893–1967)	13 September 1955	14 June 1956		People's Party
14	[[File:No image.png	80px]]	Abd al-Hasib Raslan
(1901–1959)	14 June 1956	31 December 1956		Independent
(4)	[[File:Khalid al-Azm.jpg	80px]]	Khalid al-Azm
(1903–1965)	31 December 1956	22 February 1958		Independent

[[United Arab Republic]] (1958–1961)

No.	Portrait	Name
(Birth–Death)	Term of office	Political party	Government	Ref.	Took office	Left office	Time in office	National Union (United Arab Republic)}}; "
1	[[File:Abdel Hakim Amer, 1955.jpg	80px]]	Abdel Hakim Amer
(1916–1967)	22 February 1958	28 September 1961		National Union	––

[[Second Syrian Republic]] and [[Ba'athist Syria|Ba'athist Syrian Arab Republic]] (1961–2024)

No.	Portrait	Name
(Birth–Death)	Term of office	Political party	Government	Took office	Left office	Time in office
order = 1	bSize =80	military_rank =	officeholder = Maamun al-Kuzbari	born_year = 1914	died_year = 1998	28 September 1961]]	term_end = 20 November 1961	1961	09	28	1961	11	20}}

Transitional period (2024–present)

No.	Portrait	Name
(Birth–Death)	Term of office	Political party	Government	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham}};"	Independent politician}};"
1	[[File:Russian-Syrian talks (cropped).jpg	80px]]	Major General
Murhaf Abu Qasra
(born 1984)	21 December 2024	Incumbent		HTS
(until 29 January 2025)	Caretaker
(until 29 March 2025)
Independent	Transitional

Timeline of the ministers since 1958

ImageSize = width:1050 height:auto barincrement:10 PlotArea = top:3 bottom:100 right:130 left:20 AlignBars = late

Define $today =

DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:1958 till:$today TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal

Colors = id:Ind value:gray(0.8) legend:None_(Independent) id:mil value:rgb(0.76,0.69,0.57) legend:Military id:NU value:rgb(0.86,0.08,0.24) legend:National_Union id:PP value:rgb(1,0.59,0.02) legend:People's_Party id:ASBP value:rgb(0.09,0.48,0.29) legend:Arab_Socialist_Ba'ath_Party_(Syria_Region) id:HTS value:rgb(0.21,0.49,0.47) legend:Hay'at_Tahrir_al-Sham

id:gray1 value:gray(0.85) id:gray2 value:gray(0.95)

ScaleMajor = gridcolor:gray1 unit:year increment:10 start:1960 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:gray2 unit:year increment:1 start:1959

Legend = columns:1 left:200 top:60 columnwidth:190

TextData = pos:(20,65) textcolor:black fontsize:M text:"Political parties:"

BarData = bar:Amer bar:al-Kuzbari bar:al-Nuss bar:Barmada bar:Zahreddine bar:al-Sufi bar:al-Hariri bar:Ziadeh bar:Jaber bar:Ubayd bar:Umran bar:al-Assad bar:Tlass bar:Turkmani bar:Mahmud bar:Rajiha bar:al-Freij bar:Ayyoub bar:Abbas bar:Qasra

PlotData= width:5 align:left fontsize:S shift:(5,-4) anchor:till

bar:Amer from: 22/02/1958 till: 28/09/1961 color:NU text:"Abdel Hakim Amer" bar:al-Kuzbari from: 28/09/1961 till: 20/11/1961 color:Ind text:"Maamun al-Kuzbari" bar:al-Nuss from: 20/11/1961 till: 22/12/1961 color:mil text:"Izzat al-Nuss" bar:Barmada from: 22/12/1961 till: 16/04/1962 color:PP text:"Rashad Barmada" bar:Zahreddine from: 16/04/1962 till: 08/03/1963 color:Ind text:"Abdul Karim Zahreddine" bar:al-Sufi from: 09/03/1963 till: 11/05/1963 color:Ind text:"Muhammad al-Sufi" bar:al-Hariri from: 11/05/1963 till: 04/08/1963 color:Ind text:"Ziad al-Hariri" bar:Ziadeh from: 04/08/1963 till: 14/05/1964 color:Ind text:"Abdullah Ziadeh" bar:Jaber from: 14/05/1964 till: 23/09/1965 color:ASBP text:"Mamdouh Jaber" bar:Ubayd from: 23/09/1965 till: 27/12/1965 color:ASBP text:"Hamad Ubayd" bar:Umran from: 01/01/1966 till: 23/02/1966 color:ASBP text:"Muhammad Umran" bar:al-Assad from: 23/02/1966 till: 17/03/1971 color:ASBP text:"Hafez al-Assad" bar:Tlass from: 22/03/1972 till: 12/05/2004 color:ASBP text:"Mustafa Tlass" bar:Turkmani from: 12/05/2004 till: 03/06/2009 color:ASBP text:"Hasan Turkmani" bar:Mahmud from: 03/06/2009 till: 08/08/2011 color:ASBP text:"Ali Habib Mahmud" bar:Rajiha from: 08/08/2011 till: 18/06/2012 color:ASBP text:"Dawoud Rajiha" bar:al-Freij from: 18/06/2012 till: 01/01/2018 color:ASBP text:"Fahd Jassem al-Freij" bar:Ayyoub from: 01/01/2018 till: 28/04/2022 color:ASBP text:"Ali Abdullah Ayyoub" bar:Abbas from: 28/04/2022 till: 08/12/2024 color:ASBP text:"Ali Mahmoud Abbas" bar:Qasra from: 21/12/2024 till: 29/01/2025 color:HTS from: 29/01/2025 till: $today color:Ind text:"Murhaf Abu Qasra"

Military intelligence agencies

Ba'athist Syria

Military Intelligence Directorate
Air Force Intelligence Directorate

Current

General Intelligence Service

References

"وزارة الدفاع في الجمهورية العربية السور".
"عنوان السيرة الذاتية للعماد علي عبد الله أيوب نائب رئيس مجلس الوزراء- وزير الدفاع". pministry.gov.sy.
(2024-12-17). "France returns flag to Damascus embassy as new Syria authorities build contacts with West".
Goldbaum, Christina. (2025-07-15). "Israel Attacks Near Syria's Military Headquarters. Here's What to Know.". The New York Times.
(29 January 2025). "Syrian Leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa Delivers 'Victory Speech,' Outlines Syria's Future Roadmap, Announces Dissolution Of Ba'ath Party, Armed Factions Into New 'Syrian Army'; Military Operations Command Declares Al-Sharaa President Of Syria During Transitional Phase". [[MEMRI]].
(3 February 2025). "Forging a united front: The challenges of building Syria's new army". [[The New Arab]].
(6 February 2025). "Syria: What comes after declaration of victory". [[Enab Baladi]].
(20 February 2025). "Steep uphill battle: The many challenges in building Syria's new army". [[The National (Abu Dhabi).

Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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