You're reading: Syrian president appoints new premier

BEIRUT — Syrian state-run news agency SANA says President Bashar Assad has appointed a new prime minister to replace one who defected this week to neighboring Jordan.

Assad appointed Wael Nader al-Halqi, elevating him from the post of health minister.

Halqi is a member of Assad’s ruling Baath party and hails from the southern city of Daraa, birthplace of the Syrian uprising.

The
48-year-old held the post of secretary general of the Daraa branch of
the Baath party from 2000-2004. He was appointed head of the doctors’
syndicate in 2010.

The former premier, Riad Hijab, completed his
defection by crossing into Jordan early Wednesday. His defection was a
humiliating blow for Assad’s regime.