Damascus: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad ordered former agriculture minister Riyad Farid Hijab to form a new government for the conflict-stricken country, state-run SANA news agency reported on Wednesday.
The formation of a new government for the violence-torn country came after the recent Parliamentary Elections, the first under the country`s new Constitution that allows a multi-party law and ends the monopoly of power by the ruling al-Baath party, reported Xinhua.
Hijab, the 46-year-old new prime minister who was born in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour and holds a doctorate in agricultural engineering, replaced Adel Safar, who was appointed as premier in April 2011 after Assad sacked his cabinet in one of a series of concessions in the face of anti-government protests.
Hijab, a member of the ruling Baath Party, held the position of secretary general of the party`s branch in Deir al-Zour and before that served as the governor of the coastal city of Latakia.
The Assad administration`s gestures have done little to stem 15 months of deadly violence and the internal conflict has shown no sign of abating despite all-out diplomatic efforts by the international community.
IANS
