The choice of cabinet officials was seen as a litmus test for whether the rebels who ousted Bashar al-Assad would deliver on a pledge to create a government representative of all Syrians.

Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has announced a new transitional government, retaining key allies while appointing only one woman. The new administration replaces the caretaker government formed after Bashar al-Assad’s ouster in December.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced a transitional government on Saturday, appointing 23 ministers in a broadened cabinet seen as a key milestone in the transition from decades of Assad family rule and to improving Syria's ties with the West.