Former Assad security forces hand in weapons to new Syrian government

Former Syrian regime security forces have been handing in their weapons to the rebel-linked transitional government in the southern Syrian city of Latakia, according to video filmed by Agence France-Presse.

The footage, filmed earlier this week, shows long lines of men dressed in plain clothes as they wait to hand in their personal firearms to officials with the new Syrian government’s Ministry of Interior.

Officials are seen informally interviewing the men and taking their mugshots as they hand their weapons in, the AFP footage shows. Hundreds of various handguns and ammo can be seen piled high in the corners of the government office.

It comes as Syria’s new leadership, led by the group Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS), has been working to transfer power peacefully and gain international legitimacy.

A Syrian rebel-linked government leader, Mohammad Al-Bashir, has been appointed as the country’s caretaker prime minister for the next three months, during which his government will oversee Syria’s transition to a new government, he announced in a televised address last week.

Ministers of the former HTS-linked Salvation Government, as well as Assad-era civil servants, will continue to serve as ministers in the caretaker government until March 1, 2025, Al-Bashir said.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin speaks during his annual end-of-year press conference in Moscow on Thursday.