DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — Syria ’s interim leader reshuffled several top government posts on Saturday and removed his brother from a key position that had drawn accusations of nepotism as his administration struggles to unite a divided nation after a brutal civil war.

President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s brother, Maher al-Sharaa, had served as secretary-general to the presidency in Damascus. His initial appointment last year had triggered parallels with the practices under Syria’s former President Bashar Assad and his father and predecessor, Hafez Assad.

Ahmad al-Sharaa led an insurgent offensive that ousted Bashar Assad in December 2024 after a nearly 14-year civil war. During his rule, the younger Assad also placed family members, including his wife and brother, in influential positions.

Assad’s brother, Maher Assad, was commander of the Syrian military’s 4th Armored Division — a unit accused by opposition activists of killings, torture, extortion and drug trafficking. The former president’s wife, Asma Assad, headed the influential Syrian Trust for Development.

In a decree on Saturday, al-Sharaa appointed Abdul Rahman Badreddine al-Aama — previously the governor of Homs province — as his brother’s replacement, state news agency SANA reported.

It was not immediately clear what position, if any, Maher al-Sharaa would hold going forward. He is a physician who had also previously served as Syria’s interim health minister.

Syria’s interim leader also appointed new governors for Homs, Latakia, Deir el-Zour and Quneitra provinces and a new information minister, Khaled Zaarour, an academic who was most recently the dean of the faculty of media at Damascus University. He replaces Hamza Mustafa, a former media executive who was head of the private Syria TV network before becoming information minister.