Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Tuesday parliamentary elections in Syria will take place on May 7, Al Jazeera reported.
The May 7 elections will be the first polls under the country’s new constitution, which enables representatives of all registered parties to run in the polls. The constitution was approved in a referendum on February 27, 2012.
The Syrian president pledged political reforms in the country in spring 2011. However, the new constitution was adopted only after months of violent clashes between Assad’s supporters and opponents.
Anti-government forces, who are pressing for Assad’s resignation, refuse to recognize the new constitution’s legitimacy and are unlikely to run in the polls.
The date of polls was announced on the day when Syrian pro-government forces launched a fresh assault on rebel strongholds in the country’s northwest.
