As appointments continue in the new Syrian government, Ahmad al-Sharaa, the leader of the Syrian administration, announced the appointment of Palestinian refugee Ghiath Diab as Minister of Oil, in a precedent that is the first of its kind in the history of Syria, amidst public welcome and praise for the appointment of competent and qualified people in the right place, which sheds light on the reality of Palestinian refugees in Syria and amidst the escalating controversy over their representation in the new Syria.

Thus, Diab becomes the fourteenth minister named in the new administration, and the first Palestinian refugee of Syrian affiliation to hold a ministerial portfolio in the country in Syria's history.

It seems that the decision to appoint Diab needed to be studied due to the thorny situation of the Palestinians in Syria before and after the fall of the Assad regime, as the position of Minister of Oil has been vacant since the fall of the regime for more than a month, and the current reality of the country poses a challenge to the young minister at a time when the country is suffering from a shortage of oil materials and the deterioration of infrastructure and energy resources.

Diab began holding meetings and issuing statements, stressing that the new Syrian administration is working on continuous communication with many Arab and regional countries to create opportunities for cooperation in the energy field.

The appointment of Palestinian Diab carries significant symbolism and was met with widespread popular approval.

Minister Diab is a Palestinian of Syrian nationality, that is, one of the Palestinian refugees whose ancestors sought refuge in the surrounding countries, including Syria, after the Nakba in 1948. He holds a master’s degree in petroleum engineering, and has extensive experience in project management, energy, and oil and gas exploration.

The ministerial appointment was widely welcomed on social media platforms, as Syrians considered it an important step to enhance the participation of their Palestinian partners in the country’s political life, after they were marginalized by the Assad regime for many years, and had the lion’s share in the Syrian war in relation to the population, as their refugee camps were destroyed, and thousands of them disappeared behind prison bars, and their fate remains unknown.

Syrians consider the Palestinian role to be important in Syria in many areas, and it also reflects the Syrian leadership’s openness to diversifying leadership and preferring competent people in senior positions, according to activists.

What about the representation of Palestinians in Syria?

For their part, the Palestinians expressed their pride on social media in choosing their fellow citizen, Diab, from the camps, to assume a ministerial portfolio that will push the wheel of the economy and development in the country towards a better future.

This comes amidst the heated debate in the Palestinian camps in Syria and among displaced Palestinians in Europe, about the future of the representation of Syrian Palestinians and the nature of the relationship that links them to the new leadership.

It also comes amid escalating tensions between the Palestinian popular base and representatives of Palestinian factions in Syria, especially the Fatah movement and the Palestine Liberation Organization represented by the Embassy of the State of Palestine in the capital, Damascus.