Terrorist groups seized control of Hama city center in west-central Syria on Thursday, December 5, following days of intense back-and-forth battles with the Syrian Arab Army (SAA).
The SAA announced its withdrawal to the outskirts of the city to “preserve the lives of civilians,” according to a statement issued Thursday night. Syrian Defense Minister Lieutenant General Ali Mahmoud Abbas described the withdrawal and redeployment of government forces as a “temporary tactical measure.”
The capture of Hama came just a day after the SAA had pushed the terrorist groups back more than 20 kilometers from the city, inflicting significant losses on the Levant Liberation Committee, also known as Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and its allied factions.
Meanwhile, HTS leader Abu Mohammad al-Julani made a public appearance on Wednesday, greeting supporters at the Citadel of Aleppo. This appearance followed recent media reports claiming he may have been killed in a Russian airstrike targeting one of his group’s headquarters in Idlib. In the past few days, HTS has reportedly strengthened control over strategic areas in Aleppo.
Who is al-Julani?
Ahmed Hussein al-Shar’a, widely known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani, is the current commander-in-chief of HTS, considered the most powerful terrorist group operating in Syria. Al-Julani is a Syrian national whose militant activities date back to 2003 when he joined Al-Qaeda in Iraq and became close to its leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed in a US airstrike in Baghdad in 2006.
Between 2006 and 2011, Al-Julani was reportedly arrested multiple times by US forces in Iraq. During this period, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi established the Islamic State of Iraq, an extremist group adopting Al-Qaeda-like ideology. This group later evolved into the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
In 2011, when the civil war erupted in Syria with the intent to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad, Al-Julani was allegedly tasked by Al-Baghdadi with leading Al-Nusra Front, which was recognized as Al-Qaeda’s Syrian branch. By 2013, the US had designated Al-Julani as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist.” Four years later, the Rewards for Justice program, under the US Department of State, offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his capture.
Despite some media labeled him as “Al-Baghdadi’s man,” Al-Julani refused Al-Baghdadi’s call to dissolve Al-Nusra Front and merge it with ISIS in 2013. Instead, he maintained allegiance to Al-Qaeda, which later split from ISIS. Consequently, Al-Nusra Front later fought against ISIS in Syria, eliminating much of its competition among Syrian armed groups.
In 2014, Al-Julani gave his first interview to Al Jazeera, though his face was covered. During the interview, he rejected the political talks in Geneva aimed at resolving the conflict in Syria and declared his goal of imposing Islamic law in the country, explicitly excluding minorities such as Alawites, Shiites, Druzes, and Christians.
By 2016, Al-Julani’s allegiance to Al-Qaeda had faded, as he announced in a video—this time revealing his face—that Al-Nusra Front was being rebranded as Jabhat Fateh al-Sham. A year later, he consolidated power over fractured militant groups, uniting them under the banner of HTS. Since then, Al-Julani has steadily exercised control over Idlib governorate in northwest Syria.
Concerns of spillover to Iraq
In response to the escalating violence in Syria, Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), also known as Al-Hashd al-Shaabi, reinforced troop deployments along the border with Syria. On Monday, December 2, PMU head Faleh al-Fayyadh addressed the potential risks posed to Iraq, stating: “What is happening in Syria has direct repercussions on Iraqi national security.” He further clarified: “The Popular Mobilization Forces do not operate outside Iraq, and its forces have not entered Syria.”
Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani echoed these concerns during a phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday, December 3. Al-Sudani vowed Iraq’s active involvement to mitigate the impact of the conflict. “Iraq will not act as a mere spectator in Syria, where it believes groups and sects are victims of ethnic cleansing,” he stated.
The Iraqi Prime Minister also accused Israel of paving the way for terrorist incursions into Syria by targeting Syrian army sites. “What is happening in Syria today is in the interest of the Zionist entity, which deliberately bombed Syrian army sites in a way that paved the way for terrorist groups to control additional areas in Syria,” Al-Sudani said.
In response, al-Julani released a video message on Thursday, addressing Iraqi officials’ statements. “Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and several Iraqi politicians are concerned about the situation in Syria, and I reassure them that we have no intention of harming Iraq’s security,” he said. He also urged Iraq to remain “neutral” regarding the events in Syria and to refrain from involving Iraqi military forces, including the PMU. Al-Julani reaffirmed that the fighting in northern Syria would not spill into Iraq and called for strengthened political and economic ties between HTS and the Iraqi government.
Hezbollah vows to support the Syrian government
The United States, Israel, and their allies have been betting on Hezbollah’s inability to assist Syria following the group’s prolonged engagement in grinding battles with the Zionist entity for over a year. However, Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem reaffirmed on Thursday that the organization remains committed to supporting Syria and thwarting what he described as an assault orchestrated by “US-backed Takfiri terrorists.”
“The assault against Syria is sponsored by the US and Israel, the Takfiri groups have always been their tools since 2011 when the crisis began in Syria”, Sheikh Naim stated. He also argued that the US and Israel turned to supporting terrorist groups in Syria after “their failure in Gaza… and after the agreement on ending the aggression on Lebanon and the failure of the attempts to neutralize Syria.”
Sheikh Naim stated: “We as Hezbollah will be by Syria’s side in thwarting the goals of this aggression as much as we can.” He also warned of a “very dangerous expansionist Israeli project” threatening the whole region.
Syria’s peace talks guarantors to meet in Doha
As the conflict in Syria continues to escalate, top diplomats from the three guarantor states of the Astana Peace Process—Iran, Türkiye, and Russia—are set to convene in Doha early next week to discuss the resurgence of terrorism in Syria. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced the meeting, explaining that Qatar will not participate in the discussions.
The Astana Peace Process, established in January 2017 by these guarantor states, aims to bring an end to the Syrian crisis. While Iran and Russia are allies of the Syrian government, Türkiye is considered to be aligned with some armed groups opposing it.
