Ministry of Defense

وزارة الدفاع‎
Agency overview
Formed	1920; 105 years ago (1920)
Jurisdiction	Government of Syria
Headquarters	Mahdi Bin Baraka Street, Umayyad Square, Damascus 33°30′50.58″N 36°16′42.58″E / 33.5140500°N 36.2784944°E / 33.5140500; 36.2784944
Minister responsible	Murhaf Abu Qasra
Child agency	General Staff of the Army and Armed Forces
Website	www.mod.gov.sy

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The Ministry of Defense (Arabic: وزارة الدفاع) is a government ministry office of Syria, responsible for defense affairs.^[1] Murhaf Abu Qasra, Minister of Defense holds the position of Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Armed Forces.^[2]

Following the fall of the al-Assad regime in December 2024, transitional prime minister Mohammed al-Bashir has said the defense ministry would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from Bashar al-Assad’s army.^[3]

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government	Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Abdul Hamid Pasha Al-Qaltaqi [ar] (1875–1925)	9 March 1920	3 May 1920	55 days		Independent	al-Rikabi II [ar]
2		Yusuf al-Azma (1883–1920)	3 May 1920	24 July 1920 †	82 days		Al-Fatat	al-Atassi I [ar]
3		Jamil al-Ulshi (1883–1951)	25 July 1920	30 November 1920	128 days		Independent	al-Droubi [ar] al-Ulshi I [ar]

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government	Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Shukri al-Quwatli (1891–1967)	21 December 1936	22 March 1938	1 year, 91 days		National Bloc	Bey I [ar]
2		Jamil Mardam Bey (1895–1960)	22 March 1938	23 February 1939	338 days		National Bloc	Bey I [ar]
3		Mazhar Raslan (1886–1948)	23 February 1939	5 April 1939	41 days		National Bloc	al-Haffar
4		Nasuhi al-Bukhari (1881–1961)	5 April 1939	4 July 1939	90 days		Independent	al-Bukhari [ar]
5		Abd al-Ghaffar al-Atrash [ar] (1879–1942)	20 September 1941	15 March 1942 †	176 days		Independent	al-Hakim I [ar]
6		Hasan al-Atrash [ar] (1905–1977)	18 April 1942	25 March 1943	341 days		Independent	al-Barazi [ar] al-Ulshi II [ar]
7		Ata Bey al-Ayyubi (1874–1950)	25 March 1943	19 August 1943	147 days		Independent	al-Ayyubi [ar]
(4)		Nasuhi al-Bukhari (1881–1961)	19 August 1943	14 October 1944	1 year, 56 days		Independent	al-Jabiri [ar]
(2)		Jamil Mardam Bey (1895–1960)	14 October 1944	26 August 1945	316 days		National Bloc	al-Khoury I [ar]–II [ar]
8		Khalid al-Azm (1903–1965)	26 August 1945	30 September 1945	35 days		Independent	al-Khoury III [ar]
9		Saadallah al-Jabiri (1892–1947)	30 September 1945	27 April 1946	209 days		National Bloc	al-Jabiri II [ar]

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government	Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Nabih al-Azma (1886–1964)	27 April 1946	17 June 1946	51 days		National Bloc	al-Jabiri III [ar]
2		Ahmad al-Sharabati (1905–1975)	17 June 1946	23 May 1948	1 year, 341 days		Independent	al-Jabiri III [ar] Bey II [ar]–III [ar]
3		Jamil Mardam Bey (1895–1960)	23 August 1948	12 December 1948	111 days		National Party	Bey III [ar]–IV [ar]
4		Khalid al-Azm (1903–1965)	12 December 1948	17 April 1949	126 days		Independent	al-Azm II [ar]
5		Husni al-Za'im (1897–1949)	17 April 1949	1 July 1949	75 days		Independent	al-Za'im [ar]
6		Abdullah Atfeh (1897–1976)	1 July 1949	24 December 1949	176 days		Independent	al-Barazi [ar] al-Atassi II [ar]
7		Fawzi Selu (1905–1972)	24 December 1949	28 December 1949	4 days		Independent	al-Qudsi I [ar]
8		Akram al-Hawrani (1911–1966)	28 December 1949	4 June 1950	158 days		Arab Party Movement	al-Azm III [ar]
(7)		Fawzi Selu (1905–1972)	4 June 1950	13 November 1951	1 year, 162 days		Independent	al-Qudsi II [ar]–III [ar] al-Azm IV [ar] al-Hakim II [ar]
9		Zaki al-Khatib (1887–1961)	13 November 1951	28 November 1951	15 days		People's Party	al-Hakim II [ar]
10		Maarouf al-Dawalibi (1909–2004)	28 November 1951	29 November 1951	1 day		People's Party	al-Dawalibi I [ar]
(7)		Fawzi Selu (1905–1972)	2 December 1951	19 July 1953	1 year, 229 days		Military	Selu [ar]
11		Raf'at Khankan (1903–1970)	19 July 1953	1 March 1954	225 days		Military	Shishakli [ar]
(10)		Maarouf al-Dawalibi (1909–2004)	1 March 1954	19 June 1954	110 days		People's Party	al-Asali I [ar]
12		Said al-Ghazzi (1893–1967)	19 June 1954	3 November 1954	137 days		Independent	al-Ghazzi I [ar]
13		Rashad Barmada (1893–1967)	3 November 1954	13 February 1955	102 days		People's Party	al-Khoury IV [ar]
(4)		Khalid al-Azm (1903–1965)	13 February 1955	13 September 1955	212 days		Independent	al-Asali II [ar]
(13)		Rashad Barmada (1893–1967)	13 September 1955	14 June 1956	275 days		People's Party	al-Ghazzi II [ar]
14		Abd al-Hasib Raslan (1901–1959)	14 June 1956	31 December 1956	200 days		Independent	al-Asali III [ar]
(4)		Khalid al-Azm (1903–1965)	31 December 1956	22 February 1958	1 year, 53 days		Independent	al-Asali IV [ar]

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government	Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Abdel Hakim Amer (1916–1967)	22 February 1958	28 September 1961	3 years, 218 days		Independent	Nasser IV [ar]–V [ar]–VI [ar]

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Maamun al-Kuzbari (1914–1998)	28 September 1961	20 November 1961	53 days		Arab Liberation Movement	al-Kuzbari
2		Izzat al-Nuss (1912–1976)	20 November 1961	22 December 1961	32 days		Military	al-Nuss
3		Rashad Barmada (1913–1988)	22 December 1961	16 April 1962	115 days		People's	al-Dawalibi
4		General Abdul Karim Zahreddine [ar] (1917–2009)	16 April 1962	8 March 1963	326 days		Independent	al-Azma al-Azm
5		Field Marshal Muhammad al-Sufi (1927–2018)	9 March 1963	11 May 1963	63 days		Independent	al-Bitar I
6		Major General Ziad al-Hariri (born 1930)	11 May 1963	4 August 1963	85 days		Independent	al-Bitar I–II
7		Major General Abdullah Ziadeh (1915–1998)	4 August 1963	14 May 1964	284 days		Independent	al-Bitar III al-Hafiz I
8		Major General Mamdouh Jaber [ar] (born 1928)	14 May 1964	23 September 1965	1 year, 132 days		Ba'ath Party	al-Bitar IV al-Hafiz II
9		Major General Hamad Ubayd [ar] (born 1928)	23 September 1965	27 December 1965	95 days		Ba'ath Party	Zuayyin I
10		Major General Muhammad Umran (1922–1972)	1 January 1966	23 February 1966	53 days		Ba'ath Party	al-Bitar V
11		Major General Hafez al-Assad (1930–2000)	23 February 1966	17 March 1971	5 years, 22 days		Ba'ath Party	Zuayyin II al-Atassi al-Assad
12		Colonel General Mustafa Tlass (1932–2017)	22 March 1972	12 May 2004	32 years, 51 days		Ba'ath Party	Khleifawi I [...] al-Otari
13		Lieutenant General Hasan Turkmani (1935–2012)	12 May 2004	3 June 2009	5 years, 22 days		Ba'ath Party	al-Otari
14		Colonel General Ali Habib Mahmud (1939–2020)	3 June 2009	8 August 2011	2 years, 66 days		Ba'ath Party	al-Otari Safar
15		Colonel General Dawoud Rajiha (1947–2012)	8 August 2011	18 July 2012 †	345 days		Ba'ath Party	Safar Hijab
16		Colonel General Fahd Jassem al-Freij (born 1950)	18 July 2012	1 January 2018	5 years, 167 days		Ba'ath Party	Hijab al-Halqi I–II Khamis
17		Lieutenant General Ali Abdullah Ayyoub (born 1952)	1 January 2018	28 April 2022	4 years, 117 days		Ba'ath Party	Khamis Arnous I–II
18		Lieutenant General Ali Mahmoud Abbas (born 1964)	28 April 2022	8 December 2024	2 years, 224 days		Ba'ath Party	Arnous II

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
1		Murhaf Abu Qasra (born 1984)	21 December 2024	Incumbent	24 days		HTS	Bashir

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