Panic In Greater Idlib: Top Leader Of Al-Qaeda’s HTS Warns Of Syrian-Turkish Rapprochement
The leader of al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the de-facto ruler of the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib, has warned from any rapprochement between Turkey and Syria.
In a video message released by HTS’s media network, Amjad, on January 2, Abu Mohamad al-Julani called the ongoing talks between the two countries are “a serious deviation.”
“The ongoing Russian-sponsored talks between Ankara and Damascus are a dangerous deviation that affect the goals of the Syrian revolution,” the terrorist leader said in the video message, which was titled “We Will Not Reconcile.”
Addressing the Syrian “regime,” al-Julani said “do not rejoice in what is happening, for what has passed is more than what remains, and your hour is approaching.”
Al-Julani went on to call on all militant armed factions in Greater Idlib and nearby Turkish-occupied areas in northern Syria to joint HTS in the face of the “challenge” posed by Moscow, Ankara and Damascus. The call was likely an attempt by the terrorist leader to take advantage of the situation to further expand the influence of his group.
HTS released the video message following reports about a plan for a Turkish withdrawal from northern Syria that was discussed during the breakthrough meeting between the defense ministers of Ankara and Damascus in Moscow last month.
Syria and its allies halted their ground operations against HTS and other terrorist groups in Greater Idlib in 2020 to avoid a confrontation with Turkey, who deployed a large force in the region. Thus, any Turkish withdrawal from there will likely mark the end of HTS.
It’s worth noting that HTS stepped up its attacks on Syrian government forces around Greater Idlib in the last few weeks in what appears to be an attempt to stir up tensions between Damascus and Ankara.
Despite facing some criticism from the Syrian opposition, Turkey is going forward with its plan to restore ties with Syria. The foreign ministers of the two countries are set to meet in Moscow in the second half of the month.
Al-Julani’s panic from the talks between Ankara and Damascus confirm the importance of Russia’s efforts in this regard. The main target of the talks is to form a joint mechanism to eliminate all terrorist groups in Syria.
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