Armed opposition group leads lightning attack in Syria

The Islamist armed group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) has for many years been considered the most dangerous opposition force to the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

The offensive campaign over the past two weeks, culminating in the declaration of control of the Syrian capital Damascus on December 8, is the most visible military operation of the Syrian opposition in many years, with the force led by the armed movement HTS.

Split from al-Qaeda

The lightning attack campaign that left the army of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government unable to react has partly shown the capabilities of HTS in particular, as well as the opposition alliance called the Military Operations Force with HTS as the leading unit in general, besides exploiting the weaknesses of the Syrian army.

Gunmen from the opposition armed forces were deployed to Aleppo province on November 28.

HTS originated from a group called Jabhat al-Nusra, which was founded in 2011 as a direct branch of the al-Qaeda terrorist network in Syria, led by Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani. The leader of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) organization Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi also participated in the founding of al-Nusra.

Jabhat al-Nusra is considered the most effective and dangerous force against President al-Assad's government. However, the group's ideology is jihadist, and in the early years after its formation, this was sometimes seen as contradictory to other opposition movements, which aimed to carry out a revolution under the banner of "Free Syria", according to the BBC.

In 2016, al-Jawlani publicly split from al-Qaeda, dissolving Jabhat al-Nusra and forming a new organization, named Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, and combining with several other groups and HTS, which is still active today.

Over the years, HTS has established a base of operations in Idlib province, northwest Syria, where it also runs the de facto local government, despite criticism of human rights abuses. HTS has also been involved in a number of bitter internal battles with other opposition groups.

Since splitting from al-Qaeda, HTS's goals have been limited to establishing an Islamic regime in Syria, rather than establishing a multinational Islamic state as in the case of IS.

HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Julani

HTS's relationship with another major armed movement, the Syrian National Army, which is sponsored by Turkey, is also quite complicated, sometimes being rivals, sometimes allies, with different goals. Türkiye has also denied that it is involved in the opposition's latest military campaign.

HTS seizes the opportunity

HTS - an organization listed as a terrorist organization by countries such as the US, Russia, and Türkiye - has shown few signs in recent years of rekindling large-scale fighting with the Syrian government, which controls and administers most of the country's territory.

There have been no notable clashes between the al-Assad government and the opposition since Russia and Turkey brokered a ceasefire in 2020. However, experts say the Damascus government has received military support from Russia, Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in recent years, especially in the military. Meanwhile, Syria's armed forces are largely conscripted, and the difficult economic situation has also put pressure on the issue of paying the army.

Observers agree that Israel’s attacks on Hezbollah and Iran, which have had some impact, and the ongoing war in Ukraine, which has forced Russia to focus on direct conflict, have created a clear opportunity for the Syrian opposition to resume military operations. The city of Aleppo, the bloodiest battlefield in years between the opposition and the Syrian government before the government took control in 2016, fell within a day of HTS launching its attack on November 27. Without support from Moscow, Tehran, or Hezbollah, the Syrian army was virtually isolated and unable to resist the opposition’s offensive.

The opposition military coalition carrying out the attack in Syria, in addition to HTS, also includes the Ahrar al-Sham movement (founded in 2011 and operating in Aleppo and Idlib), the National Front for Liberation (NFL, founded in Idlib in 2018), the Jaish al-Izza movement (focused on northern Hama province) and the Nour al-Din al-Zenki group (founded in 2014 in Aleppo).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nhom-vu-trang-doi-lap-dan-dau-cuoc-tan-cong-chop-nhoang-tai-syria-185241208184105696.htm