?Al-Julani and the float attempts.. Will it succeed
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda, claimed that it cut ties with the parent organization five years ago, using rhetoric about combating other terrorist groups in the hope that the US and the whole world, which still classifies it as a terrorist group, would recognize it as a political movement far from extremism.
The HTS, led by Abu Mohammad al-Julani, controls Idlib governorate in northwestern Syria, and has taken various names, from al-Nusra Front to Jabhat Fateh al-Sham to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, as part of a series of measures to float itself. Claiming to manage the affairs of the people in the governorate, but it continues repressing violating people’s rights in Idlib, and has not yet shown any regression in its extremist behavior from the crimes of its past battles or its current human rights violations.
The HTS took advantage of the understandings that took place on March 5, 2020 between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Erdogan regarding a ceasefire in the fourth de-escalation zone, becoming one of the most important terrorist formations of the Turkish regime in this region. This coordination between the Turkish regime and the HTS comes as a result of an American-Turkish agreement, through which the HTS pledged to fight all radical organizations and their leaders.
The HTS benefited from its tight control over Idlib, in light of the relative stability as a result of the NATO rejection of any military operation in the governorate, carried out by Damascus with the support of Moscow. The Turkish regime claims that any military operation against Idlib will cause a new humanitarian crisis, which will increase the number of displaced people to about two million.
The HTS and its leader are also taking advantage of international float attempts and promoting them in the media to show it as a moderate Islamic movement, far from violence and not opposing Western interests. After the British Foreign Office refused to comment on a Russian report about a meeting between a representative of the British Foreign Intelligence Service “MI-6″, the former British special envoy to Libya, Jonathan Powell” and al-Julani, in Syria, about the possibility of delisting the HTS,tThe WarGonzo channel on Telegram revealed the details of an attempt to storm the headquarters of Muslim al-Shishani, the leader of the Jund al-Sham organization, who accuses the HTS of betraying jihadist ideas.
As for the American position, it came through the remarkable statement made by the former special envoy to Syria, James Jeffrey, to PBS News in April last year. And that the HTS is “the least bad option among the various options regarding Idlib.”
Recognizing the organization, and removing it from the lists of terrorism, prompts al-Julani to benefit from the experience of the Taliban movement in Afghanistan, as well as what America did with the “Turkistan Islamic Party.” The American understanding with the Turkish regime indicates keeping the Idlib region under opposition control, provided that the radical organizations that reject the instructions The new Turkish leadership and the eradication of its leaders, such as the followers of al-Shishani and cells from ISIS and Guardians of Religion, which al-Julani previously considered an essential military component in the Syrian arena.
On the other hand, there is no Russian desire to rehabilitate the HTS and lift its terrorist designation. The issue of the HTS is still under negotiation and bargaining among all parties, and this was confirmed by the final statement of the 17th round of the so-called Astana Peace Talks, which makes al-Julani’s position difficult.
In this context, al-Julani intensified his media appearance to consolidate his image in “civil clothing”, as a “statesman”, as he appeared in a community with members of his new government that he had recently formed, and was directed by the policies that must be implemented by the “Salvation Government”, as he appeared once another to announce the opening of the Aleppo-Bab al-Hawa road project, in order to win the popular incubator and facilitate obtaining its support. In recent years, al-Julani was able to control the economic joints in Idlib governorate, establishing a number of companies that monopolize many commodities, including the “Watad” company for oil trading and real estate companies that implement projects with Turkish-Qatari financial support, in addition to remittances and others.
In early November 2017, the HTS, which militarily controlled Idlib governorate, formed the “Salvation Government”, which in turn has civilian and administrative control. Although the latter denies its affiliation with the Commission, it supervises its management through the General Shura Council, and the majority of its members belong to and support the Commission.
By supporting the infighting and deepening the state of chaos between the rival terrorist factions in the occupied north of Syria, al-Julani seeks to bite those areas with Turkish support, trying to take advantage of the voices calling for floating the “Salvation Government” at the expense of the “Interim Government” (the coalition government) accused of corruption. In addition to exploiting the demand for the unity of the armed factions, including the HTS, to dissolve and control it.
It is worth noting that on 3/2/2021, the US Department of Justice published on social media a picture of the leader of the HTS, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, wearing an official suit, as a reminder of a financial reward of 10 million dollars that it had offered to anyone who provided information. about him. “You can wear a nice suit, handsome, but you remain a terrorist,” the ministry wrote on its “Reward for Justice” page.
It seems that the attempts of al-Julani, to de-terrorize them, remain dependent on the balance of the active countries in the Syrian crisis.
