On September 15, Jaysh Usud al-Islam militant group announced its defection from Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
In an official statement, Jaysh Usud al-Islam accused HTS of “disrespecting the blood of Muslims and the Mujahedeen”. Moreover, Jaysh Usud al-Islam accused HTS of conspiring to attack other Islamic armed group, in a clear hint to the Ahrar al-Sham Movement.
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Jaysh Usud al-Islam also said that HTS disrespected religious scholars, and this proves that the HTS leaks was behind the Jaysh Usud al-Islam decision to leave HTS.
Jaysh Usud al-Islam was one of the armed groups that formed HTS back in January 28 along with the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement and Jaysh al-Ahrar which defected earlier for the same reasons.
Meanwhile, another Saudi religious scholar of HTS was assassinated in Idlib governorate. Suraqah al-Maki was targeted by unknown gunmen inside Idlib city on September 15.
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Al-Maki is the second Saudi HTS scholar assassinated during this week. On September 12, Abu Mohamad al-Jazzrawi was assassinated by unknown gunmen in Saraqib town in the eastern Idlib countryside.
HTS has not commented on the assassination so far. This allowed some Syrian opposition activists to suggest that HTS itself could be behind the assassination. Other activists believe that these assassinations were organized by the anti-HTS groups in Idlib governorate on orders from foreign backers like Qatar or Turkey.
Idlib governorate next battle might not be between the Islamic groups in the governorate and the pro-government forces, but between the Islamic groups themselves. The new de-escalation agreement in Idlib governorate increases the chance that Idlib might witness another “rebel civil war” soon.
captain Idlibstan civil war, coming to a theater near you
This is good news for the SAA. While the jihadi’s in Idlib-stan have nothing better to do, than killing each other, the SAA can finish off ISIS in the east. Then the SAA can attack the Idlib-ies with full force (with much shorter supply lines), de-escalation zone or not!
If i’m correct, HTS, their units and the area’s they control, are excluded from the de-escalation deal, because of them being internationally recognized as a terrorist organisation.
The deescalation zones are pushed by Russia to help the SAA achieve their goals. As soon as they want to attack Idlib, you can forget about all that and it’s back to the usual business of fighting terrorism/ Al Qaeda.
They violate them all the time so it wouldn’t require much provocation to rescind the agreement and any guarantor in breach can cause it to be terminated. They aren’t permanent and there are others ones where there will be a a move or else. The Russians and negotiators need to quit halting the SAA in eliminating those who don’t want to comply and removing from the area in question.
Bwahahaha ?
Ahhh, Saudi clerics in Syria. But really folks, it’s a civil war.
Saudi clerics, they must be crypto jews!!
That’s a bit early, even for you!
I bet the spec ops of the “free” world, Syria, Iran, and Russia are all having a field day “realigning” local politics
In Idlib, the jihadi vermin are so penned in, that they are now falling victim to their own stench!
good muslims bad muslims….sorry to “say” that but…
Terrorist against terrorist let them kill each other.Give them weapons to wakbar each other.Declare the remaining one’s as moderate refugees friend’s of Nato and send them to Britain, Poland,Latvia,Georgian and Estonia to become rapefugees.