SITE Intel Group – HTS News in SyriaSeptember – September 12-18, 12-18, 2018 2018 SITE Intelligence Weekly Report HTS NEWS IN SYRIA DONATION CAMPAIGN: SAMKEH, IDLIB: HTS Raises Money Operation Against IS for “Mujahideen” ELITE FORCES: Fighters Graduate in Idlib siteintelroupom1 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 Table of Contents HIGHLIGHTS: September 12-18, 2018 3 FEATURED ARTICLE 3 HTS Donation Campaign 3 HTS OPERATIONS 4 HTS Operations Against IS 4 Idlib 4 HTS MEDIA 5 Graduation of HTS Fighters 5 HTS-FNL Agreement 5 HTS Command Meeting 6 Maintaining Positions 6 Aleppo 6 Idlib 6 Demonstrations 7 Airstrikes 8 The following materials are for information purposes only and may not be copied, reproduced, or transmitted without the explicit permission of SITE Intelligence Group and specific attribution to SITE Intelligence Group. 2 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 HIGHLIGHTS: SEPTEMBER 12-18, 2018 FEATURED ARTICLE: HTS donation campaign in Idlib. HTS OPERATIONS: An operation against IS in eastern Idlib, four hostages freed. HTS MEDIA: Graduation of fighters in Idlib; HTS-FLN agreement; Command meeting; Maintenance of positions in Aleppo and Idlib; Friday protests in Idlib area. FEATURED ARTICLE HTS DONATION CAMPAIGN The past month, videos and reports of a “popular campaign to support the al-Murabatayn” dominated HTS Media. These have included local citizens participating in the fortification of HTS “military” points and Friday “mass demonstrations.” The reports present HTS and its “Salvation Government” as being supported by the local population. This week HTS continued the trend with similar reports including a donation campaign. Both the “Salvation Government” and HTS published reports of the “popular support” of the donation drive on September 14 and 15 respectively. • On September 15, Ebaa published a video of HTS’ “Office of Advocacy and Guidance” launch of a donation campaign “for the mujahideen and the al-murabatayn.” Donations were collected in a mosque in Jabal Zawiya, a town south of Idlib. The video shows the demonstrations from Friday and the fortification of HTS positions with the claim of “popular support” from the residents of the region and a “large turnout of people” for the donation campaign. COUNTING OF MONETARY DONATIONS. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 15) CHILDREN SHOWN DONATING MONEY. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 15) 3 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 • On September 14, HTS’ “Salvation Government” published donation statistics from its “popular campaign of support.” HTS claimed a total of 3,339,785 SYP was donated, the equivalent of 6,485 USD. INFOGRAPHIC ENGLISH TRANSLATION: Statistics of Some Villages and Towns Within the Popular Campaign to Support al- Murabatain The Messenger of Allah, Peace Be Upon Him, said, “He who equips a Ghazi (fighter) in the way of Allah is as if he has taken part in the fighting himself; and he who looks after the dependants of a Ghazi in his absence, is as if he has taken part in the fighting himself.” 3,339,785 SYP al-Dana: 2,493,370 Tel al-Karama: 217, 600 Atme: 567,755 Deir Hassan: 148,000 Qah: 159,050 Ibbin: 94,160 Al-Anwar: 131,150 Irhab: 38,450 Aqrabat: 43,500 Al-Touama: 51,000 Hezreh: 67,350 Kafr Karmin: 71,200 Anadan: 186,200 HTS OPERATIONS This week HTS claimed only one operation against IS and no operations against the SAA; this is down from a total of five claimed operations last week and four operations the week prior. HTS OPERATIONS AGAINST IS IDLIB • On September 12, HTS claimed a raid against IS in the village of Samkeh in the countryside of eastern Idlib. During the operation, they claimed they released four hostages in good health who were then handed over to their families. The raid came two days after another operation, also in the Idlib area, on September 10, in which HTS claimed to have freed another IS hostage. 4 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 HTS MEDIA From September 11-18 Ebaa reported the graduation of a new group of fighters, an agreement between HTS and the FNL, and an HTS command meeting. There were continued fortifications of HTS positions in the Aleppo and Idlib areas as well as Friday protests for the third week in a row. Ebaa publications continued their focus on the “popular support” for HTS fighters. In a deviation from the previous two weeks, Ebaa only reported one airstrike. GRADUATION OF HTS FIGHTERS • Ebaa posted a video reporting the graduation of HTS Elite Forces in the northern Idlib countryside on September 18. The video shows fighters marching in formation, taking part in drills, and listening to speeches. THE HTS “GRADUATES” ARE SEEN MARCHING IN FORMATION WITH HTS BADGES ON THEIR ARMS. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 18) THE HTS “GRADUATES” TAKING PART IN DRILLS. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 18) HTS-FNL AGREEMENT • On September 16, Ebaa reported representatives from HTS and the National Liberation Front (FNL) met in Jabal Zawiya, south of Idlib, and signed an agreement resolving “outstanding problems between them.” The deal includes the release of respective detainees and the formation of a committee to maintain constant contact between the groups to resolve problems between them. 5 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 HTS COMMAND MEETING • HTS officials from its “military operations room” held a meeting with the people of Saraqib in the eastern countryside of Idlib. Ebaa and the “Salvation Government” both published pictures of the meeting; Ebaa blurred the faces of two individuals. MAINTAINING POSITIONS ALEPPO • On September 12, Ebaa posted photos of a “military” position in the northern Aleppo countryside. Below fighters can be seen fortifying their positions. IDLIB • Ebaa published a series of photo reports on September 13 of HTS positions on the eastern outskirts of Idlib. Fighters can be seen with their weapons and surveying their surroundings. Residents are depicted helping with the fortification of HTS positions. IDLIB: “MUJAHIDEEN LIFE” AT HTS “STEADFAST” POINTS. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 13) 6 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 IDLIB: RESIDENTS HELPING IN THE “REHABILITATION AND FORTIFICATION” OF HTS POSITIONS. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 13) ABU AL-DUHUR, IDLIB: HTS FIGHTERS AT THEIR POSTS. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 13) • On September 15, Ebaa posted further photos depicting HTS fighters fortifying their positions on the eastern outskirts of the Idlib countryside. DEMONSTRATIONS • For the third week in a row, towns in the Idlib area held a series of coordinated protests after Friday prayers. Ebaa posted photos and videos, reporting the demonstrations were in favor of the “overthrow of the regime” and the “continuation of jihad and revolution.” • Towns where Ebaa reported protests: • Idlib:. Idlib proper, Kafr Oweid, Khan Shaykhun, Maar Tahroma, Sarmada, the border camps, Salqin, Saraqib, Jisr al-Shughur, Ariha, Kafr Nabl, Maarrat al-Nu’man, Qurqania, Harem, Azmarin, and al-Dana. • .Aleppo:. Haritan, Kafr Hamrah, Anadan, Hayyan, Jop Kass, and al-Abzmo. 7 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 PROTESTORS AT A BORDER CAMP. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 14) JISR AL-SHUGHUR: PROTESTORS IN A BOMBED OUT BUILDING. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 14) SALQIN: CHILDREN HOLDING A GRAPHIC PROTEST SIGN SARAQIB: MAN HOLDING A SIGN WITH RUSSIAN AND ENGLISH SAYING “RUSSIA KILLS CHILDREN IN SYRIA, STOP THE TRANSLATION. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 14) KILLING OF CHILDREN.” (PUBLISHED SEPT. 14) IDLIB: EBAA VIDEO SHOWS FIGHTERS FROM THE RED BANDS PARTICIPATING IN A DEMONSTRATION. (PUBLISHED SEPT. 14) AIRSTRIKES • During the week of September 12-18, Ebaa reported only one airstrike on the town of al-Hawiz in the al-Ghab Plain west of Hama; this follows a series of heavy bombing by the Syrian and Russian Air Forces especially on September 4,7, and 8. 8 SITE Intel Group – HTS News in Syria – September 12-18, 2018 SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES SITE’s database-driven web portal is an unmatched source of thousands of messages and online artifacts spanning a decade’s worth of terrorist and extremist activity. Our comprehensive database provides down-to-the-minute reports, analyses, and translations of extremist communications, multimedia, and propaganda. Threats monitored by SITE span those of jihadists, hackers, and far-right/far-left movements among others. 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