Partial Local Autonomy in Southern Syria: Conditions, Durability, and Replicability

05 November 2020

In July 2018, Daraa Governorate, once home to an array of rebel groups and local governance councils, supported by significant international assistance, was partially recaptured by the Government of Syria (GoS). Through a combination of force and negotiations, the GoS has restored control over key routes and infrastructure, although a number of former rebel groups have retained limited autonomy in their own communities. Since then, poor security and economic conditions, inadequate services, and competition between and among GoS security actors and former opposition factions have challenged the status quo in Daraa, but, by and large, the situation has held.

These negotiated outcomes – and the GoS’s willingness to accept them – were predicated upon multiple factors, including the relatively moderate nature of southern opposition factions, Russian and Israeli military postures, and the historical connections of the Military Intelligence Directorate (MID) in Daraa. While lessons learned from the south are important, the particular conditions and outcomes in Daraa are not likely to be replicable elsewhere in Syria.

 

The ideas expressed are those of the author not the publisher

Published in October 2020

All rights reserved to GCSP

Part of the Syria Transition Challenges Project 

Related Course

Related Event

Priorities, opportunities and challenges for NATO in the aftermath of The Hague Summit
23 October 2025 12h30-14h00
GPW - 80 Years of the UN Multilateralism: Reinforcing a Timeless Framework for Global Peace
15 October 2025 09h00-10h30