MQ-9 Reaper in Idlib. Photo: Step News Agency
An airstrike by the US-led coalition’s aircraft has killed a top Ahrar al-Sham military commander, Abou Hani Al-Masri, in the Syrian province of Idlib.
Abou Hani Al-Masri was one of the most prominent top members of the Ahrar al-Sham militant group which is known for pushing a hardcore islamist agenda, ethnic cleansing, using of chemical weapons for provocations and combat across Syria and links with al-Qaeda (Jabhat al-Nusra/Jabhat Fatah al-Sham). Despite this the mainstream media describes Ahrar al-Sham as a “moderate opposition group”.
Ahrar al-Sham also declined to paritipate in the Turkish-Russian-Iranian backed peace talks between the government and the “opposition” in Astana.
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It’s ironical but at the same time a part of Ahrar al-Sham participated in the Turish offensive on the ISIS-held town of al-Bab in northern Syria which is supported by the US-led coalition’s airpower.
During the recent split of militant groups into two major coalitions: Hayyat Tahrir al-Sham led by Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra) and Ahrar al-Sham, Ahrar al-Sham basorbed a number of minor Idlib militant groups.
Meanwhile, pro-militant media outlets and activists report that the US-led coalition intensified airstrikes in the province of Idlib, targeting sites belonging to Hayyat Tahrir al-Sham.
