IDLIB: The only rebel-held province of Syria is increasingly under the control of a hardline militant group affiliated with Al Qaeda, whose menacing gunmen patrol the streets, keeping tabs on travellers.
In militant parlance, the “black flag” now flies over Idlib province, even as some local officials try to push back against the extremists in a bid to save whatever independence they have.
The consequences of the creeping takeover could be devastating for the estimated 2 million residents, many of them already displaced by six years of fighting in Syria.
If Al Qaeda’s wing, known as Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS), asserts control over core governmental functions, the flow of humanitarian aid could be stopped.
There is also the fear that the United States, Russia or the Syrian government will step up attacks on the province.
“One air strike will be enough for me to lose everything I have saved,” says Mohammed, a shopkeeper who asked that we not use his full name. He says that the amount of goods on sale is already down.
“Life is now very similar to Afghanistan under the Taliban,” said one local resident, asking not to be named. There are pockets where people can smoke, but HTS is stepping up the confiscation of tobacco products and imposing dress codes.
The group’s dominance in the province is all but certain, analysts say. “They are the unchallenged hegemony... All the smaller groups have no choice but to [jump on the] bandwagon,” says Sam Heller, a Beirut-based analyst with The Century Foundation. — dpa
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