Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS; Levant Liberation Union) is led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, and is the dominant faction in the rebel alliance which toppled the regime of Bashar al-Assad with a lightning offensive launched late last month from its stronghold in the north-west. The group has its origins in al-Qaida and Islamic State, and was formally founded in 2017 after breaking with both. HTS has since governed 2 million people in Idlib province, and evolved a more pragmatic ideology, many analysts say. Concerns remain about its extremist roots and the presence of veteran jihadist fighters among its forces.
The Syrian National Army (SNA) is a coalition based in northern Syria backed by Ankara. It was founded in 2017 and includes a diverse range of Arab and Turkmen groups and fighters, including some veterans from the very earliest days of the rebellion against the Assad regime. The SNA participated in the campaign against IS, but has also intensively battled the Kurdish forces in Syria. In recent days, the SNA has launched an offensive against Kurdish groups and has made gains around Manbij, a strategic northern town. Turkey wants to prevent Kurdish groups establishing a solid, contiguous presence on the Syrian side of its southern border and stabilise the zone to allow the return of refugees.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is a Kurdish dominated alliance that holds a vast swathe of territory in north-east Syria and is backed by the US. The SDF, which includes some Arab fighters, was founded in 2015 and did much of the hardest fighting against IS. Led by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), the SDF is viewed by Ankara as part of the broader Kurdish separatist movement that has fought a bloody nationalist campaign against Turkey for decades. Kurds make up sizeable minorities in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
The Southern Operations Room is a newly formed coalition of rebel groups in southern and south-eastern Syria, drawn mainly from Druze communities and opposition groups. The region was an early stronghold of opposition to the Assad regime but suffered heavily from brutal repression. Fighters from the Southern Operations Room were the first to reach Damascus at the weekend.
The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (Isis) has its origins in the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), which included many al-Qaida militants who fought against US-led and government forces there. The civil war in Syria opened up new opportunities, and eventually allowed the foundation of a “caliphate” by a breakaway group that by 2015 had amassed massive military and economic resources. Defeated by an international coalition including Syrian factions in a four-year campaign, the organisation has remained active, particularly in central Syria, and was targeted by US warplanes earlier this week.
