Methodology
ACLED’s approach to coding actors in post-Assad Syria
A guide to ACLED’s approach to coding actors in Syria after the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
On 8 December 2024, Syrian Islamist rebel factions led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) formed what was known as the Military Operations Command and seized control of Syria, ending Bashar al-Assad’s rule. This methodology note outlines how ACLED codes actors in Syria following these events.
Before 8 December 2024, the conflict in Syria featured more than 1,000 armed actors across different sub-conflicts that together formed the larger conflict. Following the collapse of the Assad regime, many of these groups dissolved. For those that remained active, ACLED codes them under one of three categories.
Regime/military forces of Syria
Since 9 December 2024, ACLED codes the coalition of former rebel groups as the new government of Syria under the unified actor Government of Syria (2024-). Most rebel and Islamist factions either disbanded or fully integrated into the newly established Syrian national armed forces shortly after 9 December 2024, with the exception of the Syrian National Army (SNA), which continued to operate as a separate armed entity in northern Syria until 29 January 2025. As a result, all former rebel and Islamist groups are coded as Military Forces of Syria (2024-).
Sub-groups within the new military and police forces are coded as distinct sub-actors. For example, military intelligence services are coded as Military Forces of Syria (2024-) General Security Forces. Likewise, sub-groups within the Syrian police forces are now coded with Police Forces of Syria (2024-) [sub-group]. For example, police intelligence services are coded Police Forces of Syria (2024-) General Intelligence Services.
Anti-government militias
Some former regime fighters, commanders, and loyalists have formed militias targeting the new government, particularly along the Syrian coast. The generic actor Anti-Military Operations Command Militia (Syria) is coded when these militias engage in violence against the new government forces.
Former regime personnel who have either reconciled with the new regime or returned to civilian life are coded with Civilians (Syria) as the primary actor and Former Military Forces of Syria (2024-) as the associated actor.
Armed actors whose coding did not change after the political transition
On 10 March 2025, Kurdish militias (QSD: Syrian Democratic Forces) that control north-eastern Syria agreed to merge with Syria's new armed forces. However, they continue to engage in clashes with Turkish forces and Turkey-backed groups that formerly operated under the Syrian National Army in northern Syria. As such, these actors continue to be coded as distinct military actors.
Other actors, including the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq (ISIL), communal and tribal militias, and Unidentified Armed Groups, continue to be coded according to ACLED’s standard methodology on coding actors. (For more, see the section on actors in ACLED’s Codebook.)
