Ahmad al-Awda in the town of Bosra, Jan. 5, 2025. (Credit: Bakr Alkasem/AFP)
Ahmad al-Awda, commander of the Southern Operations Chamber, was among the pivotal figures in the fall of Damascus. On Dec. 8, 2024, he became the first rebel leader to enter the Syrian capital, accompanied by Druze factions, while fighters from the Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) were still advancing from Hama. Despite coordination among various commanders that led to the toppling of former president Bashar al-Assad, Awda has refused to dissolve his faction and integrate into the newly formed Syrian army, choosing instead to maintain his group's autonomy. Read more Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham causes wave of instability in Daraa His absence from a Dec. 25 meeting between Defense Minister Murhaf Abou Qasra and southern military leaders was seen as a deliberate act of defiance, raising concerns about potential instability in the...
Ahmad al-Awda, commander of the Southern Operations Chamber, was among the pivotal figures in the fall of Damascus. On Dec. 8, 2024, he became the first rebel leader to enter the Syrian capital, accompanied by Druze factions, while fighters from the Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) were still advancing from Hama. Despite coordination among various commanders that led to the toppling of former president Bashar al-Assad, Awda has refused to dissolve his faction and integrate into the newly formed Syrian army, choosing instead to maintain his group's autonomy. Read more Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham causes wave of instability in Daraa His absence from a Dec. 25 meeting between Defense Minister Murhaf Abou Qasra and southern military leaders was seen as a deliberate act of defiance, raising concerns about potential instability in...
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