ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The Syrian government has announced that they would create a National Security Council, to be chaired by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
The Council will be tasked with "coordinating and managing security and political policies,” according to the Syrian presidency.
The creation of the body comes just a few days after Syria saw four days of bloody clashes in the western coastal regions of the country between the government’s security forces and members of the Alawite minority - those still loyal to deposed president Bashar al-Assad.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said nearly 1,400 civilians were killed by the security forces or allied groups.
The deadly escalations sparked an international outcry, with Iraq, Iran, the US, and the UN condemning the civilian mass killings.
Sharaa on Sunday vowed that they “will hold accountable, firmly and without leniency, anyone who was involved in the bloodshed of civilians... or who overstepped the powers of the state," while the presidency issued a decree for the formation of a committee to probe the “violations against civilians and identify those responsible for them.”
Four days after the altercations broke out, the Syrian defense ministry on Monday announced the end of its operations along the western coast of the country.
The decree on the new council stated that it was being formed "to enhance national security and respond to security and political challenges in the coming stage.”
In addition to Sharaa, the ministers for foreign affairs, defense, the interior, and the head of the country's intelligence agency, will also be members of the Council.
There will also be two "advisory" members and a technical expert appointed by Sharaa.
“Decisions related to national security and the challenges facing the state will be implemented in consultation with the members,” read the presidency decree.
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