Will major opposition groups face off in Syria?
The new formation of Tahrir al-Sham, which is comprised of several Syrian opposition factions including Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, raises questions about the goals of this new group.
![MIDEAST-CRISIS/SYRIA-REBELS FILE PHOTO: Fighters of the Syrian Islamist rebel group Jabhat Fateh al-Sham cheer on a pickup truck after a Russian helicopter was shot down in the north of Syria's rebel-held Idlib province, Syria, August 1, 2016. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah/File Photo - RTSWG1A](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2017/02/RTSWG1A.jpg/RTSWG1A.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=EPDVzPIY)
It didn't take long for Syrian jihadist groups to react to the first round of the Astana talks on Syria that were held Jan. 23-24 in the capital city of Kazakhstan. Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, a former al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria, attacked the Syrian sites of the factions that participated in the talks under the sponsorship of Russia, Turkey and Iran in Astana.
Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, which is classified as a terrorist group by the United Nations and the United States, attacked on Jan. 24 the headquarters of Jaish al-Mujahideen and al-Jabhat al-Shamiya in the governorate of Idlib and the countryside of Aleppo.