Hayat Tahrir al-Sham driving out activists from areas it controls in Syria
Since defeating its military opponents in parts of Syria, extremist organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has been forcing influential individuals to leave as well.
ALEPPO, Syria — Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS, formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra) is expelling its opponents from parts of Idlib and western Aleppo to areas controlled by Turkey in north and northeast Aleppo.
HTS tightened its military and administrative grip on wide areas in Idlib governorate, western Aleppo, northern Hama and Sahl al-Ghab in early January, forcing out troops following battles against the National Front for the Liberation of Syria, which is affiliated with the moderate rebel group the Free Syrian Army (FSA).
On Jan. 17, HTS targeted individuals. HTS-affiliated security officials in Darat Izza, in western Aleppo, notified more than 30 influential citizens there that they had to leave within 24 hours. The outcasts included academics, media activists, civil servants and some people who worked with the FSA-affiliated Free Syrian Police. These citizens headed to Afrin, which is under Turkey-affiliated FSA control.
Media activist Yahya Mayo told Al-Monitor the people HTS expelled are rebels — opponents of the Bashar al-Assad regime — whom the inhabitants loved and considered honorable. But those rebels are moderates compared with HTS followers.
