ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The Syrian parliament is set to hold its first session on Monday, an election official said Wednesday, while announcing the names of the final 70 lawmakers chosen by President Ahmed al-Sharaa over eight months after the process of forming the legislature began.

The 70 members of the total 210 parliamentarians represent the contingent directly appointed by the president, who will serve an extendable term of 30 months, according to the presidential decree read out by the head of the Higher Judicial Committee for Parliamentary Elections, Mohamed Taha al-Ahmed, during a presser.

The formation of the parliament is seen as a test of Sharaa’s promise of an inclusive government, with much attention being paid to the representation of Syria's myriad ethnic and religious minorities, many of whom have engaged in sporadic clashes with the Sunni- and Arab-majority Damascus government.

Sharaa’s direct role in selecting parliamentarians has drawn backlash, with growing criticism from Kurdish political groups earlier in May, calling the process one of political appointments rather than competitive elections.

Also in May, 24 Kurdish political parties issued a joint statement condemning what they described as an attempt to marginalize Kurdish political representation through the mechanism used to form the assembly.

According to the Secretary-General of the People’s Assembly, Mohammed Hamza Shamout, of the 70 final members, seven are from the Kurdish-majority Rojava's (northeast Syria) Hasaka province, four from the Alawite-majority Latakia, and two from the Druze-majority Suwayda.

Laith al-Balous, a Druze leader with close ties to Damascus, was one of the MPs appointed from Suwayda, which has seen Druze militias repeatedly skirmish with Syrian state forces in the past year.

Syrian officials did not clarify how many of the appointed lawmakers are from ethnic minorities.

The president has also appointed 15 more women, raising the number to 21 female parliament members from only six chosen earlier.