Syrian opposition

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Syrian Opposition المعارضة السورية (Arabic) al-Muʻaraḍatu al-Sūrīyah
Flag
Areas under control of various opposition groups as of January 2024      Interim Government (National Army)      Salvation Government (Tahrir al-Sham)      al-Tanf (Syrian Free Army)
Capital	Damascus (claimed) Azaz (de facto by SIG)[1][2] Idlib (de facto by SSG) Al-Tanf Base (used by Syrian Free Army)
Largest city	Damascus (claimed)
Official languages	Arabic
Demonym(s)	Syrian
Government	Unitary provisional government
• President of the Syrian National Coalition	Hadi al-Bahra
• Prime Minister of interim government	Abdurrahman Mustafa
Legislature	General Assembly / General Shura Council
Establishment
• Formation	15 March 2011
Currency	Turkish lira,[3][4] Euro, United States dollar and Syrian pound (SYP)
Time zone	UTC+3 (EET)
Driving side	right
Calling code	+963
ISO 3166 code	SY
Internet TLD	.sy سوريا.
Preceded by Syrian Arab Republic

Politics of Syrian opposition
Symbols Flag Coat of arms
Constitution Antalya conference (2011) Human rights
Executive Syrian Interim Government Prime Minister: Jawad Abu Hatab President: Anas al-Abdah Syrian Salvation Government Prime Minister: Mohammed Al-Sheikh Dep Prime Minister: Riad al-Asaad
Legislature Syrian National Coalition Syrian National Council National Coordination Committee
Administrative divisions Capital Governorates Districts
Political parties Syrian National Coalition Syrian National Council National Coordination Committee
Foreign relations HNC SNC recognition Arab League membership
Other countries
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The Syrian opposition (Arabic: المعارضة السورية al-Muʻaraḍatu s-Sūrīyah, [almʊˈʕaːɾadˤɑtu s.suːˈɾɪj.ja]) is the political structure represented by the Syrian National Coalition and associated Syrian anti-Assad groups with certain territorial control as an alternative Syrian government.

The Syrian opposition has evolved since the beginning of the Syrian conflict from groups calling for the overthrow of the Assad government in Syria and who have opposed its Ba'athist government.^[5] Prior to the Syrian Civil War, the term "opposition" (Arabic: المعارضة) had been used to refer to traditional political actors, for example the National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change; that is, groups and individuals who have had a history of dissidence against the Syrian state.^[6]

The first opposition structures to form in the Syrian uprising were local protest-organizing committees. These formed in April 2011, as protesters graduated from spontaneous protests to protests organized by meetings beforehand.^[7]

The Syrian uprising phase, from March 2011 until the start of August 2011, was characterized by a consensus for nonviolent struggle among the uprising's participants.^[8] Thus the conflict could not have been yet characterized as a "civil war", until army units defected in response to government reprisals against the protest movement.^[9][10] This occurred 2012, allowing the conflict to meet the definition of "civil war."^[11]

Opposition groups in Syria took a new turn in late 2011, during the Syrian Civil War, as they united to form the Syrian National Council (SNC),^[12] which has received significant international support and recognition as a partner for dialogue. The Syrian National Council was recognized or supported in some capacity by at least 17 member states of the United Nations, with three of those (France, United Kingdom and the United States) being permanent members of the Security Council.^{[13][14][15][16][17][18]}

A broader opposition umbrella group, the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, was formed in November 2012 and has gained recognition as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people" by the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (CCASG) and as a "representative of aspirations of Syrian people" by the Arab League.^[19] The Syrian National Coalition was subsequently considered to take the seat of Syria in the Arab League, with the representative of Bashar Al-Assad's government suspended that year. The Syrian National Council, initially a part of the Syrian National Coalition, withdrew on 20 January 2014 in protest at the decision of the coalition to attend the Geneva talks.^[20] Despite tensions, the Syrian National Council retained a degree of ties with the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces. Syrian opposition groups held reconciliation talks in Astana, Kazakhstan in October 2015.^[21] In late 2015, the Syrian Interim Government relocated its headquarters to the city of Azaz in North Syria and began to execute some authority in the area. In 2017, the opposition government in the Idlib Governorate was challenged by the rival Syrian Salvation Government, backed by the Islamist faction Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

A July 2015 ORB International poll of 1,365 adults across all of Syria's 14 governorates found that about 26 percent of the population supported the Syrian opposition (41 percent in the areas it controlled), compared to 47 percent who supported the Syrian Arab Republic's government (73 percent in the areas it controlled), 35 percent who supported the Al-Nusra Front (58 percent in the areas it controlled), and 22 percent who supported the Islamic State (71 percent in the areas it controlled).^[22] A March 2018 ORB International Poll with a similar method and sample size found that support had changed to 40% Syrian government, 40% Syrian opposition (in general), 15% Syrian Democratic Forces, 10% al-Nusra Front, and 4% Islamic State (crossover may exist between supporters of factions).^[23]