In Syria, a leader for the interim government has been appointed.

The head of the temporary government of Syria has been appointed Muhammad al-Bashir.

This was reported by Al Arabia and Reuters, citing a statement from the new authorities on local TV. Al Jazeera had previously reported on the preparations for this appointment.

Al-Bashir will serve as the Prime Minister of the transitional government of Syria until March 1, 2025.

Muhammad al-Bashir was born in the Idlib province in northwestern Syria in 1983. In January 2024, he was appointed head of the rebel "Syrian Salvation Government," which controls areas in northwestern Syria, including Idlib province. Prior to this, he held the position of Minister of Development and Humanitarian Affairs.

Al-Bashir is also known to be a close associate of the leader of the "Hayat Tahrir al-Sham" group, Abu Muhammad al-Julani.

Meanwhile, sources from Reuters within the Syrian security forces reported on Tuesday that Israeli troops have entered Syrian territory and are located approximately 25 km from Damascus.

The day before, Israeli forces occupied a buffer zone in southern Syria and conducted airstrikes on military bases of the former Bashar al-Assad regime to prevent military assets from falling into the hands of the new rebel Syrian authorities.

A Syrian source in the security services told Reuters that Israeli troops have reached the city of Qatana, east of the demilitarized zone separating the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights from Syria.

The Israeli government denies that its troops have moved beyond the buffer zone, previously assuring that it would not participate in the conflict within Syria.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the entry of the Israeli army into the buffer zone and further into Syria.

According to Riyadh, Israel's actions will deprive Syria of chances for security restoration.

Sources in the regional security services and officers from the ousted Syrian army, who previously served Assad, stated that powerful Israeli airstrikes continued across Syria the day before, targeting military warehouses and airbases, resulting in the destruction of dozens of helicopters and planes.

As a result, approximately 200 airstrikes have completely destroyed Syrian army resources, the sources said.

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The civil war in Syria has been ongoing since 2011. The unexpected advance of opposition groups against President Bashar Assad, which includes both radical Islamists and moderate factions, began last month. Aleppo, Hama, and Homs were captured almost without a fight.

On the night of December 8, representatives of the Syrian opposition entered Damascus and announced the fall of Assad's regime. Bashar Assad himself is currently in Moscow, where Putin has granted asylum to him and his family.

Source. For insights into the current situation in Syria and how events may unfold, read the piece by Mind's commentator “Catastrophic Success” in Syria: Five Challenges Provoked by the Change of Power.