Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (“HTS”) is a coalition of Sunni Islamist insurgent groups in northern Syria. It evolved from Jabhat al-Nusra which was al-Qaeda’s former branch in Syria. In an effort to appear moderate, HTS cut ties with al-Qaeda in 2016. Despite these efforts, HTS remains listed as a terrorist organisation due to its history and ongoing activities.
HTS is designated as a terrorist organisation by the US, Russia, Turkey, the United Kingdom and other states. But since HTS took control of Syria at the end of last year, it seems Russia, along with other governments, is willing to consider removing HTS from the terrorist list, even though there is no evidence that HTS has changed its ways.
We don’t have any answers, only questions. Questions such as: Was the takeover of Syria agreed upon between powerbrokers in Syria, including Russia and the United States, before HTS launched their offensive? Were groups such as HTS used to give the appearance of a takeover while, in reality, it was a changing of the guard?
Hellbound and Down 