Syrian Salvation Government

The Syrian Salvation Government (ḥukūmat al-ʾinqāḏ as-sūrīyah) is a de facto alternative government of the Syrian opposition in Idlib Governorate, formed in early November 2017 under the initiative of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rebel coalition. There followed weeks of conflict between the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) and the Syrian Interim Government (SIG), with reports of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham unilaterally disbanding several SIG-supported local councils across northwestern Syria. The SSG is led by a prime minister (currently Ali Keda, since 18 November 2019) who is elected by a legislative body named the General Shura Council, which is headed by a president (currently Mustafa al-Mousa, since 24 April 2020). Officially, HTS has declared its independence from the civilian administration of the Salvation Government, describing the relationship as a "partnership" to provide security to the people of Idlib and offer an alternative to the Ba'athist government. Some analysts have disputed such claims, asserting that HTS maintains control over SSG's security and economic departments and uses SSG as its political front. The government's education ministry supervises the formal schooling system in Idlib, with more than 550,000 students, 1,800 schools and 12 universities as of 2022. These include roughly 950 schools directly operated by the ministry and employing nearly 12,500 staff members, in addition to the private education system authorized by the SSG. Curriculum has developed the pre-2011 Syrian syllabus in partnership with UNICEF; teaching maths, science, English, history, etc. Educational institutions follow gender segregation norms and as per education ministry guidelines, Ba'athist and anti-religious elements in the national syllabus have been deleted. Since 2014, large parts of Idlib Governorate, including Idlib City, in Northwest Syria have been largely in the military control of the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front which would undergo various internal splits and power-struggles, eventually renouncing AQ ties in 2016 after forming Jabhat Fath al-Sham (JFS).