Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fights opponents on social media
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham has created an electronic group whose mission is to track down and close social media accounts sharing posts against it.
ALEPPO, Syria — After armed confrontations on the ground for the past two years, the fight between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib and its jihadi opponents has now moved to social media.
Over the past couple of years, HTS tightened its security grip and dismantled several opposing jihadi groups in Idlib, notably the al-Qaeda-affiliated Hurras al-Din (Guardians of Religion Organization), as well as Jund al-Sham and Jundallah. HTS also arrested dozens of members and leaders of these groups, and several other breakaway jihadis who joined opposing groups.
These security crackdowns, however, did not completely end the influence of jihadi groups. Today, several remnants of those organizations have moved their fight to Telegram — the preferred social networking site for jihadis.
On Feb. 23, HTS’ so-called electronic jihad army announced the closure of several Telegram channels run by opposing jihadis. HTS said on Telegram, “our efforts are ongoing, and we will continue our work until the closure of the last channel of any extremists, spoiler, and criminals.”
