The post-Assad era has seen a continued merger of pre-existing and new local governance structures across Syria. Last summer, I wrote a lengthy report about the early stages of governance, security, and judicial structures in rural areas. Many of these systems have solidified in the year since, others changed or abandoned. In many cases, the design of local governance structures are a response to the new government’s own resource and conflict challenges.
One key new structure is the Reconciliation Council. These councils have existed in Syria for decades, but under the new government they have been given an elevated and more official role. They are almost exclusively formed in all-Sunni towns, with a particular focus on communities with a significant number of IDPs.
These councils work closely with one of the key pre-existing local governance structures: the area director. In my 2025 report, I highlighted the important hybrid role that District Directors were playing in the first months after liberation. These hybrid roles have since evolved, becoming more standardized and purely administrative. However, there has also been a significant expansion of Sub-district Directors - administrative officials who oversee the component sub-districts of each district.
Earlier this month I met with a member of the Talbiseh Reconciliation Council and the Talbiseh Sub-district Director in order to better understand the roles of these two bodies. Below is a transcript of both interviews.