DAMASCUS, Syria — Syria’s interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, dismissed his brother from a senior government position on Saturday and named four new provincial governors and an information minister, according to the state news agency SANA.
The decrees named Abdul Rahman Badreddine al-Aama, the former governor of Homs, to replace Maher al-Sharaa as secretary-general to the presidency. Maher al-Sharaa, a physician who previously served as interim health minister, had held the post since last year, an appointment that drew criticism for resembling the nepotism of the ousted Assad government.
Under Bashar Assad, whose government al-Sharaa’s insurgent forces overthrew in late 2024, relatives occupied key positions. Assad’s brother Maher Assad commanded the 4th Armored Division, a unit accused by opposition activists of killings, torture, and drug trafficking, while his wife Asma al-Assad led the Syrian Trust for Development, an influential state body.
The reshuffle also appointed new governors for the provinces of Homs, Latakia, Deir el-Zour, and Quneitra. For the information ministry, al-Sharaa selected Khaled Zaarour, an academic who most recently served as dean of the media faculty at Damascus University, replacing Hamza Mustafa, a former executive of the private Syria TV network.
It was not immediately clear what role, if any, Maher al-Sharaa would hold in the future, SANA reported.