HTS disperses protesters with force in Idlib, leaving casualties
IDLIB, Syria (North Press) – The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS, formerly al-Nusra Front) dispersed on Tuesday protests against it in the city of Idlib, northwestern Syria, injuring several protestors and destroying their tents.
Residents in Idlib protested in front of an HTS-run court, demanding the release of detainees in HTS prisons and the removal of Abu Mohammad al-Julani from power.
The HTS’ General Security Service (GSS) raided the protest tents on Jalaa Street, attacking the protestors with sticks and clubs and firing shots in the air to disperse them, resulting in the injury of four protesters.
They also confiscated cell phones of protesters documenting the clashes.
Despite this crackdown, protests continued in the towns and villages of Atmeh, Mashhad Ruhin Camp, Binnish, Maarrat Misrin, and Kafr Takharim in support of the protestors and against the actions of the HTS.
Moreover, HTS mobilized military reinforcements, including personnel and vehicles, to the city of Idlib in anticipation of any potential developments.
Anti-HTS protests have erupted in various areas of Idlib and the countryside of Aleppo, northwestern Syria, since late February sparked by the killing of a man under torture in HTS prisons according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The HTS controls half of Idlib and parts of Hama, Aleppo, and Latakia governorates in northwestern Syria. Additionally, it has established the Salvation Government which is considered the civil wing of the group.