Ahrar al-Sham fights among itself following shaky Idlib rebel truce
[AlMasdar] Early yesterday, the emir of Ahrar al-Sham
...a Syria jihadi group made up of Islamists and salafists, not that there's that much difference, formed into a brigade. They make up the main element of the Islamic Front but they don't profess adoration of al-Qaeda and they've been fighting (mainly for survival) against the Islamic State. Their leadership was wiped out at a single blow by a suicide kaboom at a crowded basement meeting in September, 2014...
’s ‘Manufacturing Workshop’, Abu Raed Al-Jee, announced his and his crew’s defection to the Ha’yat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) jihadist group. This development occurred not long after a truce was agreed on between the HTS and Ahrar al-Sham in Idlib Governorate.
The Manufacturing Workshop in question contains a huge stockpile of mortar shells, making it a very valuable asset for Ahrar al-Sham.
In response to this defection, Ahrar Al-Sham sent an armed convoy toward the workshop area to seize back the site and prevent the group’s munitions from falling in to HTS hands.
Upon the convoy arriving, clashes erupted between Ahrar al-Sham loyalists and the defected militants in and around the vicinity of the workshop.
The clashes lasted until the evening hours of yesterday and resulted in the defectors surrendering and agreeing to terms set by the Ahrar al-Sham leadership whereby they could leave the area for HTS-held territory in Idlib after ceding the workshop and its contents back to the possession of Ahrar al-Sham.
Syrian Al-Qaeda founder discovered dead in Idlib city
[AlMasdar] On Saturday, the dead body of Abu Muhammad al-Shuhayl was found in downtown Idlib in what most local sources claimed was an assassination by poison.
While other reports claimed illness or a heart attack, Abu Muhammad Al-Shuhayl was nevertheless proclaimed dead after being found lifeless in his home.
Abu Muhammad Al-Shuhayl was a founding member of Jabhat Al-Nusra (now known as Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham) and served as a high-ranking military commander up until his death.
His death follows several days of infighting with Ahrar al-Sham, a rival group to Al-Qaeda’s Syrian franchise branch, Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS). In previous months, HTS has also cracked down on Islamic State sleeper cells across rural Idlib along with any Free Syrian Army (FSA) group opposed to its strict Sharia implementations.
Idlib city falls 100 percent under HTS jihadist control
[AlMasdar] The city of Idlib has fallen completely under the control of the Ha’yat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) jihadist group. Historically, control over the city had been divided between HTS and various Islamist rebel groups, namely Ahrar al-Sham and the Free Syrian Army
... the more palatable version of the Syrian insurgency, heavily influenced by the Moslem Brüderbund...
(FSA).
Despite the ceasefire agreement reached two days ago between HTS and Ahrar Al-Sham, the former nonetheless launched a surprise attack on the last bases and checkpoints belonging to both the latter and the FSA today.
Firefights erupted for several hours, however in the end, Ahrar al-Sham and FSA forces based in Idlib were pushed to entirely withdraw from the city.
This development puts Idlib city entirely under the control of a designated terrorist organization. Many analysts believe that the strategic repercussions of this move by HTS will actually be of a nature that sees the jihadist group suffer more than benefit.
The main speculation in this regard is that it is now quite possible that Russia, Turkey and the US-led coalition will combine efforts to bomb bases, troop housings, ammunition depots and tactical position of HTS within the city – all of this serving to fundamentally weaken the military capabilities of the terrorist group.