1/ EXCLUSIVE: I worked for last 3 weeks on this story about ISIS leader Amir al Mawla.
Until now not much is known about him but files shared with me by @CTCWP are a treasure trove.
Here is Al Mawla's identity card. And he isn't a Turkmen but an Arab.
2/ Already 12 yrs ago, in Jan 2008, U.S. forces in Iraq captured Amir Al Mawla in Mosul. Back then, Al Mawla worked with the ISI – the Islamic State of Iraq. The US army interrogated him extensively & wrote everything down in “tactical interrogation reports.”
5/ Acc to the interrogation reports, Amir Al Mawla (now the chief of ISIS) was born in Oct 1976.
Not in Tal Afar but in town of Mahalabiyah.
Al Mawla told his U.S. captors during interrogations that his ethnicity is “Arab”. This ends rumors that Al Mawla is an ethnic Turkmen.
6/ The fact that Al Mawla is an Arab was independently confirmed to me by a reliable source inside Mahalabiyah.
Acc to this source & to the ID card, Amir Al Mawla belongs to Al-Slibi tribe, which is a branch of the larger al Mawla tribe. Both tribes are of Arab origin.
7/ Already for over a century, al- Slibi tribe lives in parts of Iraq which are traditionally ethnic Turkmen, near Mahalabiyah & Tal Afar. So al-Slibi’s are close to the Turkman and speak fluent Turkish but are themselves Arabs. ISIS chief Al Mawla speaks both Arabic and Turkish.
8/ But there are many more details found in these interrogation reports from 2008.
For instance, back in 2008 Al Mawla (now the current chief of ISIS) had one wife and a son.
His wife’s name is: Isra Abd al Rahman Ali.
His deceased mother is named: Samira Sharif Abd al Qadir.
9/ When current ISIS chief Amir Al Mawla was arrested by U.S. troops in Jan 2008, he was the General Shari’i Amir for Mosul.
In 2007 he had become Mosul's deputy wali.
After long interrogations by U.S. forces, Al Mawla was handed over to the Iraqi government &later released.
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1/ Clashes between Druze & HTS in Damascus. Druze refusing to hand over their areas to HTS. And HTS reluctant to give in to Druze, fearing other minorities might follow. And Israel now threatening to invade and "help" the Druze. Here a thread on chaos in Syria's south:
2/ The situation in Syria's south is complicated. So, let's start with the most recent developments: The fighting in Damascus suburb Jaramana between armed Druze groups and HTS. Jaramana is here on the map:
3/ Couple of days ago, an armed member of the new Syrian security forces was killed in Jaramana. Not exactly clear what happened. But the story goes that after he shot in the air, Druze gunmen in Jaramana responded to this. A fire fight erupted & the Syrian fighter was killed.
1/ Another US drone strike in Syria killed today a member of Al Qaeda's affiliate Hurras al Din. This time Turkish national Muhammed Yusuf Ziya TALAY (aka Jafar al Turki). During the last 9 days, 3 US strikes in Idlib have killed 2 Libyans, 2 Syrians and 1 Turk. What’s going on?
2/ Turkish national Muhammed Yusuf Ziya TALAY was already listed as a counter sanctioned entity by the Turkish Ministry of Interior. According to information from that list, Talay was suspected of being a member of Al Qaeda. He was born in Ankara in 1986.
3/ Talay was killed in Idlib province in NW Syria, on the main road between the towns of Killi and Kaftin. Geolocator @ChrisOsieck already found the exact spot where the US drones strike took place:
1/ Worrying reports coming out of Syria of mass executions on Thursday in Alawite village of Fahel, near Homs. Acc to villagers, gunmen attacked Fahel and killed 58 men. In nearby village of Maryamin 2 men killed. I'm talking to people on the ground, this is what I learned:
2/ This is the region where it took place. Fahel, Maryamin and Shin. Northwest of Homs and southwest of Hama.
3/ Syrian authorities led by HTS declared days ago already that there was a security operation ongoing in rural areas west of Homs. The aim of these operations was, according to the new rulers, to flush out pro-Assad-regime elements.
1/ Confirmed: Syria's current interim Minister of Justice, Shadi Al-Wais, appears in 2 videos from 2015 in which he oversees the public executions of two women accused of prostitution.
The face of the lady is blurred when they shoot her in the head.
2/ The person speaking in the 1st video is the current minister of justice. The 1st video is cut before the actual execution takes place. The 2nd execution is shown but blurred. Minister stands in front of a wall saying: Jabhat al Nusra - Tanzeem al Qaeda fi bilad al Sham (Al-Qaeda group in the Levant).
3/ Standing on right in pic is Shadi Al-Waisi back in 2015 during the execution, insert shows recent picture of same person wearing a suit but now as minister of Justice. Thanks to @VeSyria for verifying this story.
1/ Hundreds protested in Damascus today for a secular state. One of the reasons for the protest was an interview an HTS official gave to a TV on women's rights. Below I’ll translate the interview. It gives clues about the ideas of the new leaders of Syria
2/ AlJadeed is a Lebanese tv channel. The official they interviewed is Obaida Arnaout. He is the spokesman for the HTS led interim government. Main topic of the interview is how the new interim government/HTS views the role of women in the new Syria.
3/ The first question they asked Arnaout was: What do you think about representation of women in ministries and in parliament?
Answer: "The matter is premature, it is left to the specialists from the legal and constitutional [fields], they will work on reviewing the structure of the state, the woman is an important element, and she is honored."
1/ As HTS (supported by Turkey) rapidly advances from the north towards Damascus, more moderate rebel groups (supported by Jordan, US) are already approaching Damascus suburbs from the south. The question is: Are both groups allies or rivals?
2/ HTS is still around Homs, 160 kms from Damascus. In the meantime, rebel groups from the south are already much closer to the capital. They are NOT HTS. They are a mix of rebels from Daraa, Suwayda & Tanf (where 200 US ground troops are stationed).
3/ The rebel coalition in the south has published a statement yesterday saying they are heading to Damascus and are against terrorism and sectarianism. This of course is clearly meant to distance themselves from HTS, which has Al-Qaeda roots and is still on the US terror list.