Syria to hold parliamentary elections on October 5

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(Reuters) -Syria will hold its first parliamentary election under its new Islamist-led administration on October 5, state news agency SANA said on Sunday.

The new assembly is expected to lay the groundwork for a broader democratic process following the ousting of former President Bashar al-Assad last December after nearly 14 years of civil war. Critics say the current system lacks sufficient participation from minority groups.

It will also be tasked with approving legislation aimed at overhauling decades of state-controlled economic policies and ratifying treaties that could reshape Syria’s foreign policy alliances.

Voting for the 210-member People’s Assembly will take place “across all electoral districts”, SANA said, even though the electoral commission said last month voting would be delayed in three provinces due to security concerns.

A third of the People’s Assembly seats will be appointed by President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

Syria initially said an election would take place in September and that voting in Sweida — which witnessed clashes in July between Druze fighters and Sunni Bedouin tribes — as well as in the provinces of Hasaka and Raqqa, which are partly controlled by the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces, would be postponed.

In March, Syria issued a constitutional declaration to guide the interim period under Sharaa’s leadership. The document preserves a central role for Islamic law while guaranteeing women’s rights and freedom of expression. However, it raised concerns about the concentration of power among the country’s Islamist-led leadership.

(Reporting by Hatem Maher and Ahmed TolbaEditing by Christina Fincher)