"Revolution in northern Syria against occupation is much needed"

After the mercenaries of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham took control of all of Idlib in March 2015, the military and political scene became more complex due to the presence of regional and international interactions, represented by the emergence of mercenary factions fighting by proxy to protect the interests of those supporting countries.

In this report, we will shed light on the latest events that the city of Idlib witnessed, most notably the recent demonstrations that took place against the mercenaries of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham and the parties behind them.

The "Alliance Agents" Crisis

The issue of the demonstrations began in mid-2023 when the security authorities of the HTS gangs were from the military wing, in addition to others, and charged them with "collaboration" or intelligence with the "International Coalition against ISIS" or with the Government of Damascus and Russia.

Investigations and arrests continued for months, affecting nearly 1,000 people, according to news sites, and included prominent leaders such as the Secretary-General of the Idlib region, nicknamed “Abu Muhjen al-Haskawi,” and one of the founders of the HTS and its most prominent leaders, nicknamed “Abu Maria al-Qahtani.”

Al-Qahtani was killed after his release through a suicide bombing that targeted him and was attributed to ISIS mercenaries, according to media platforms affiliated with Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham mercenaries, but ISIS mercenaries have not announced this yet.

In a report published by Al-Arab newspaper, Saleh al-Hamawi, one of the former leaders of the so-called “Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham,” accused al-Julani of carrying out the assassination, and he said that al-Julani was ready to kill anyone who stood in the way of his authority. al-Hamwi added, “The Islamic State did not carry out any bombing in Idlib for three years, due to an agreement with the HTS in exchange for allowing their families to move and allowing every leader to visit his wife from the desert,” he wondered, “Why was he now able to do that exclusively after al-Qahtani left?”

In its turn, the leadership of the "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" mercenaries hastened to hold a number of meetings, the first of which included the mercenary leader, "Abu Muhammad al-Julani", with the community elites and notables of villages and towns to present promises to work to achieve the demands in order to stop the demonstrations, and it was announced that its implementation had begun, starting with the issuance of a general amnesty for those placed in its prisons.

Since the killing of al-Qahtani, silence mixed with fear has prevailed in Idlib. The demonstrations, publications, and incitement have stopped, and al-Qahtani’s supporters have not shown any reaction or threat yet, while analyzes have said that this fatal blow has completely reset the situation.

The demonstrations, in their general nature, appear to be an ongoing form of struggle for power, as the movement demands only the overthrow of al-Julani, without mentioning the dismantling of the mercenaries of Hay’at Tahrir Sham, and without stopping raising slogans of radical Islam that raise local and international suspicions.

Who are the parties behind the demonstrations?

The Syrian writer and dissident, Ali Al-Amin Al-Suwayed, pointed out during an exclusive interview with ANHA's agency that there are several parties behind these demonstrations, and each party is driven by a different agenda, and one of the most important parties is Turkey, which wants to create an international and local justification that enables its agents to lead the occupied areas in northern Aleppo to sit with al-Julani; To restructure the two regions and merge them into one canton under the umbrella of the Turkish occupation.

The second party, according to Ali, is “Hizb ut-Tahrir,” which assumes the role of a civil revolutionary, and demands the release of those kidnapped by the mercenaries of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham or “Jabhat al-Nusra.” This party is also moving with the support of the Turkish occupation, and in agreement with al-Julani personally, in order to achieve the basic goal of Turkey.

As for the third party, they are the guardians and families of the abductees, who have been hidden by the mercenaries of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham for years in their prisons. He said: "Most of this group only cares about the release of their captive children held by the organization, which is classified as a terrorist organization internationally."

Ali pointed out that: “The fourth party is the revolutionaries who reject the presence of the Turkish occupation, and reject the presence of mercenaries in northern Syria. These people took advantage of the theatrical movement to raise the ceiling of people’s demands, and perhaps to encourage those who are silent about the existence of HTS, and the pressure on it increases so that it can be dismantled later, but this group is weak and unable to move, and it is placed under the microscope of the so-called General Security affiliated with al-Julani.”

The Syrian opponent and writer also said that, with regard to living conditions, they deserve a hundred revolutions against the de facto “terrorist” authorities, but people did not dare to protest for them except when the voices of overthrowing al-Julani became louder, so the excuse of the high cost of living became an excuse for the detainee by the HTS to escape from their hands.

There are mercenary groups affiliated with Turkey deployed in Idlib, led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhet al-Nusra) and mercenary groups under different names. From Uighurs, Turkestans, and other jihadist mercenary groups, all of whom pledge allegiance to Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham.

Idlib...a state of Turkish importance

Many observers and those familiar with the public affairs of Idlib realize that the scenario of unifying the occupied region under one umbrella by Turkey is the most likely to be negotiated on the table. These are initial attempts to pave the way for a repeat of the issue of the Iskenderun district (Alexandretta), which was separated from Syria in the 1930s.

In this context, Syrian writer and dissident Ali Al-Amin Al-Suwayd told  ANHA's agency: “Just as the West considers northern Syria to be a Turkish affair, so do the countries of Astana, led by the Syrian regime. The regime appears to have abandoned northern Syria to Turkey, as part of a deal in which Turkey helped it liquidate the Syrian revolution and restore its control over the three De-escalation zones: Daraa, the Damascus countryside, and Homs, in exchange for retaining northern Syria from the sea to Iraq and at a depth of more than 30 km.

The writer believes that Turkey was able to occupy approximately half of the northern border to the required depth, under the pretext of establishing a safe zone and the amended Adana Agreement.

He indicated that the "Syrian regime" does not want to regain anything from these areas except the M4 road, and it also does not want to return the displaced who will constitute a burden on "the regime's failed state, leaving room for the establishment of a canton resembling Turkish Cyprus in northern Syria, ruled by Turkey."

Dialogue is a solution to the Idlib dilemma and the Syrian crisis

Observers believe that the ideal solution to ending the Syrian crisis in general, and the Idlib crisis in particular, lies in ending the foreign occupation of the country and closing the door to foreign interference, in addition to starting a series of meetings between all the true representatives of the Syrian people, and dialogue on a comprehensive constitution that guarantees the rights of all in a democratic manner.

Commenting on this, the Syrian writer and opposition figure, Ali Al-Amin Al-Suwayed, points out: “The realistic initiatives that can resolve the Syrian issue are the initiatives undertaken by Syrians from all parts of Syria and from all Syrian nationalities and ethnicities far from the Syrian regime.”

He said: "Only in this way can the homeland be saved and a true citizen state be established, after the overthrow of the Syrian regime, which will be the first goal of the national initiatives, and the second goal will be to build Syria, a homeland that embraces all."

T/ Satt.

ANHA