The Syrian armed groups that took part in the offensive to overthrow Bashar al-Assad have agreed to disband and join the Syrian Defense Ministry. The agreement was reached following a meeting between Ahmed al-Sharaa (known as Abu Mohammed al-Julani), the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which came to power, and the group commanders.

As AFP notes, in a photograph published following the meeting, Ahmed al-Sharaa stands surrounded by the leaders of several groups operating in Syria, with the exception of representatives of the Kurdish forces. At the same time, the head of HTS spoke about plans to prevent the country from having "weapons uncontrolled by the state," including those owned by the Kurdish forces.

On December 22, Ahmed al-Sharaa claimed that armed groups would only be able to exist in Syria under the control of the Defense Ministry. According to him, many commanders agreed to this condition even before the anti-government forces began their offensive. The Ministry of Defense in the transitional government will be headed by Murhaf Abu Qasra (known by his nom de guerre Abu al-Hasan al-Hamawi), who was the commander of the military wing of HTS.