Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Islamist group that led the recent overthrow of Syria's Assad regime, has been implicated in the terrorist beheading of French teacher Samuel Paty.
This may undermine claims by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham leader Mohammed al-Julani that his organization was originally formed as an offshoot of al-Qaeda and is moderating from its jihadist past. The organization was linked to the brutal beheading of Samuel Paty in the case. In 2020, a Parisian student was accused of blasphemy and faced with a butcher knife after showing a caricature to students during a class on freedom of expression. Islamic prophet Muhammad.
According to 2020 article from Le Parisien Shortly after the beheading, Russian-born Chechen attacker Abdurav Anzorov sent a photo of Paty's decapitated head and an audio message to his Instagram account. “I beheaded my teacher, and now I am going to wage jihad in France.''
The account replied with the message, “Allah Akbar!” May the peace, mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you. ” Immediately after the exchange, Anzorov was shot dead by police.
le figaro report Anzorov's contact was later revealed to be Faruq Shami, a Tajik national, who was posing as an independent reporter in Syria and was later described by French anti-terror police as being “active in media jihad and Hayat propaganda.” Tahrir al-Sham was found to have played a role. ” Shami is said to have been in regular contact with radicalized Muslims in France.
The 18-year-old Chechen terrorist, who came to France as a refugee, was also reportedly in contact with another Syrian jihadist who was working as a “sniper” in the HTS.
Just 12 days before the fatal attack on Paty, Anzorov praised HTS Group on his Snapchat account, saying: His servants, and the best group to join right now is Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. ”
When asked by France 24 journalist Wasim Nasr about the apparent link to Paty's beheading, an HTS spokesperson denied any involvement, although he refused to condemn the attack.
“We live in an open world. Anyone can contact anyone. We don't know about the Chechen student, but his actions provoked Islam in most of his speeches.” “This student lives in France and his direct interaction with the environment is more important. His actions are the result of what is happening in France, not in Idlib.” said the person.
it looks like this Biden administration Sir Keir Starmer's left-wing Labor government in the US, and the UK's under consideration Remove Hayat Tahrir al-Sham from their respective terrorist lists. The European Union told a Commission spokesperson that Brussels is currently not engaging with HTS or its leaders. I'm saying Monday: “As HTS assumes greater responsibility, we must evaluate not only their words but also their actions.”
