Al-Sharaa: Organising elections in Syria could take five years

The interim president of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa has announced that organising elections could take as long as five years, France 24 via Reuters reported on February 3rd.
The interim president has vowed to undertake a political transition that includes an inclusive government, national conference and elections.
During an interview broadcasted on a private Syrian television channel, Sharaa said: “My estimate is that the period of time will be approximately between four and five years until the elections.”
In late December, the interim president told Al Arabiya TV that it could take four years for elections to start, adding that the voting system “needs to be re-established, and this takes time.” While he has extended his estimated time frame, Sharaa promised that Syria will be turned into a “republic with a parliament and an executive government,” and that he will implement “a law regulating political parties.”
Sharaa’s Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group, a former al-Qaeda affiliate, spearheaded the campaign that ousted Bashar al-Assad and his regime. The decision to appoint Sharaa as president emerged from a meeting between militants who took part in the offensive against Assad.
A declaration in Damascus announced that “Sharaa has assumed the presidency of the country in the transitional phase” and would “carry out the duties of the presidency of the Syrian Arab Republic, and represent it in international forums.”
Upon being appointed president, Sharaa said that he will prioritise preserving civil peace by promoting transitional justice and preventing acts of revenge. Under the new authorities, Sharaa also noted that economic infrastructure will be developed, and military and security forces will be rebuilt.
France 24 via Reuters, The Arab Weekly