Emerging amidst the chaos of the Syrian civil war, Ahrar al-Sharqiya gained notoriety as an armed gang operating within the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), drawing international attention for war crimes and acts of terror. The group’s worst atrocity came in 2019 with the brutal killing of Hevrîn Khalaf, Secretary-General of the Future Syria Party, and her driver, Ferhad Remedan. Abu Hatim Shaqra, leader of Ahrar al-Sharqiya, was recently appointed by HTS (Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham) as commander of the 86th Division, responsible for Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Hasakah. Since taking over Damascus on December 8, 2024, HTS has continued to sow terror in Syria, enacting practices reminiscent of the Ba’ath regime and beyond.

Let’s take a closer look at the criminal record of Ahrar al-Sharqiya under Abu Hatim Shaqra, appointed commander of the 86th Division.

A gang under Turkey’s control

Formed in Deir ez-Zor in 2016, Ahrar al-Sharqiya is affiliated with the Syrian National Army (SNA), making it effectively a proxy of the occupying Turkish state. While branding itself as an anti-regime force, the group is infamous for massacres of civilians, looting, and ethnically targeted violence. Its leader, Abu Hatim Shaqra (Ahmed Ihsan Fayyad al-Hayes), has direct ties to ISIS. He participated in Turkey’s invasion campaigns in Syria, including the 2018 Afrin assault and the 2019 offensives on Tell Abyad and Ras al-Ayn. Ahrar al-Sharqiya has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States (via SDGT sanctions) and the Netherlands (via a court ruling).

Leader Abu Hatim Shaqra

Abu Hatim Shaqra is known as both the planner and executor of the gang’s crimes. Despite his direct involvement in the killing of Hevrîn Khalaf, he was appointed by HTS in 2025 to command the 86th Division, overseeing Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Hasakah. This appointment has been condemned as a scandal by human rights organizations and the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria. Additionally, Shaqra graduated from Artuklu University in Turkey under a false identity, raising suspicions that the gang benefits from an international protection network. His record of war crimes has become a disgraceful stain that undermines the legitimacy of the new governing authority.

The murder of Hevrîn Khalaf

One of Ahrar al-Sharqiya's most savage acts was the murder of Hevrîn Khalaf and her driver on October 12, 2019, on the M4 highway between Tell Abyad and Ras al-Ayn. According to Amnesty International and UN reports, Ahrar al-Sharqiya stopped Khalaf’s vehicle, dragged her out, beat her, and executed her. Her driver was also killed on the spot. Khalaf was a Kurdish politician working for a peaceful future in Syria. Turkish media praised her killing as a “successful operation,” reinforcing links between the group and Turkish command. A Bellingcat (an independent journalism and research platform based in the Netherlands) video analysis confirmed beyond doubt that Ahrar al-Sharqiya was responsible. The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) described the killing as an extrajudicial execution and called on Turkey to investigate. Human Rights Watch (HRW) stated in its October 2019 report that the group’s executions, including Khalaf’s, constituted acts of ethnic cleansing against Kurdish civilians—classified as war crimes. The U.S. placed Ahrar al-Sharqiya under sanctions in 2021, freezing its assets and prohibiting transactions involving U.S. persons.

Portrait of a war criminal: Ahrar al-Sharqiya

The international community's silence in the face of the appointment of Abu Hatim Shaqra, leader of the Ahrar al-Sharqiya gang responsible for terror and war crimes in Syria, by HTS (Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham) is a blow to justice.

Emerging amidst the chaos of the Syrian civil war, Ahrar al-Sharqiya gained notoriety as an armed gang operating within the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), drawing international attention for war crimes and acts of terror. The group’s most glaring atrocity came in 2019 with the brutal killing of Hevrîn Khalaf, Secretary-General of the Future Syria Party, and her driver, Ferhad Remedan. Abu Hatim Shaqra, leader of Ahrar al-Sharqiya, was recently appointed by HTS as commander of the 86th Division, responsible for Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, and Hasakah. Since taking over Damascus on December 8, 2024, HTS has continued to sow terror in Syria, enacting practices reminiscent of the Ba’ath regime and beyond.

Let’s take a closer look at the criminal record of Ahrar al-Sharqiya under Abu Hatim Shaqra, appointed commander of the 86th Division.

A gang under Turkey’s control

Formed in Deir ez-Zor in 2016, Ahrar al-Sharqiya is affiliated with the Syrian National Army (SNA), making it effectively a proxy of the occupying Turkish state. While branding itself as an anti-regime force, the group is infamous for massacres of civilians, looting, and ethnically targeted violence. Its leader, Abu Hatim Shaqra (Ahmed Ihsan Fayyad al-Hayes), has direct ties to ISIS. He participated in Turkey’s invasion campaigns in Syria, including the 2018 Afrin assault and the 2019 offensives on Tell Abyad and Ras al-Ayn. Ahrar al-Sharqiya has been designated a terrorist organization by the United States (via SDGT sanctions) and the Netherlands (via a court ruling).

Other documented war crimes

Ahrar al-Sharqiya’s crimes go beyond the murder of Hevrîn Khalaf:

-After the occupation of Afrin, they looted homes, shops, farms, and other properties. HRW’s July 2018 report documented systematic theft and property seizures.

-In March 2018, HRW confirmed the looting of over 50 homes in Afrin’s Mahmudiye district.

-In Afrin’s olive-producing villages (like Jindires and Rajo), the group seized olive groves and took over the harvest. SOHR reported that 70% of the olive yield was stolen by SNA factions, especially Ahrar al-Sharqiya. The oil was sold in Turkish markets.

-At least 200 shops in Afrin’s commercial areas were looted. SOHR reported in April 2018 that more than 30 shops were emptied, some turned into SNA headquarters.

-Families of Ahrar al-Sharqiya and other SNA factions, or Arabs brought in from Idlib, were resettled in looted homes. According to a March 2019 UN report, more than 5,000 homes were occupied by the SNA, with Ahrar al-Sharqiya playing a key role.

Executions of civilians

During Turkey’s 2019 invasion of Ras al-Ayn and Tell Abyad, Ahrar al-Sharqiya was reported to have executed 9 civilians, including Hevrîn Khalaf, on the M4 highway. SOHR confirmed these executions.

The UN's March 2020 report documented the group’s involvement in extrajudicial executions, violence against civilians, and war crimes. The UN used video footage from 12 October 2019 as evidence and held Turkey responsible for its proxy forces’ actions.

Attacks on christians

According to HRW and SOHR, Ahrar al-Sharqiya marked Christian homes in Tell Abyad’s Syriac and Armenian neighborhoods with red paint. These markings were used to identify and target Christian families. On 15 October 2019, SOHR reported that crosses or the word “Christian” were painted on the doors of 12 homes. The families were threatened with death unless they left. Around 150 of the 200 Christian families (approximately 600 people) in Tell Abyad were forcibly displaced, many resettling in Kobani or Hasakah.

The group looted Christian homes, shops, and churches. The UN confirmed this in its October 2019 reports. Tell Abyad’s St. George Syriac Church was looted on October 16, 2019, with icons and religious items stolen. The building was later used as an SNA base. At the Virgin Mary Church, the phrase “Allahu Akbar” was spray-painted on the door, and religious symbols inside were destroyed. These attacks were seen as targeting the Christian identity. At least 30 Christian homes and 15 shops were looted, with SNA families resettled in some.

Amnesty International reported threats and kidnappings targeting Christians. On 14 October 2019, a Syriac family member was kidnapped and later released for a $5,000 ransom, after being tortured and insulted for being a “crusader.”

Massacres of Druze and Alawites

In 2025, digital reports and SOHR data documented massacres committed by Ahrar al-Sharqiya, under HTS, against Druze and Alawite communities. Between 6 to 17 March 2025, SOHR reported 1,383 civilian deaths, 311 of whom were Alawites. By March 10, the count stood at 830, mostly Alawites; by 12 March it reached 1,225. The UN confirmed 111 of these killings but suggested the real number was much higher. Victims were often asked “Are you Alawite or Sunni?” before execution, clear evidence of sectarian targeting.

The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) reported 973 civilian deaths in March 2025, most of them Alawites. It also found that nearly 700 of those killings were by government forces against Alawite communities. SOHR released a separate report on targeted attacks against Druze civilians during March-April 2025, linking the violence to HTS efforts to suppress Druze resistance to the new constitution.

Links to Turkey

Ahrar al-Sharqiya operates under the umbrella of the Turkish-backed SNA. Turkey provides logistical and financial support. Organizations like the UN, HRW, and Amnesty International have asserted that Turkey may bear responsibility for Ahrar al-Sharqiya’s war crimes due to its effective control over the group.

International legal status

The International Criminal Court (ICC) could investigate these crimes through universal jurisdiction, but political pressure has so far prevented any action. The UN has documented Ahrar al-Sharqiya’s crimes, but Security Council vetoes block tangible sanctions. U.S. sanctions have not halted the group, and the EU remains silent due to political and economic ties with Turkey. Appointing a war criminal to a military position in 2025 is a blatant affront to international law. The silence of the ICC, the UN, and human rights organizations proves that it's not justice being served, but the perpetrators being protected.

Complicity of the international community

Despite Hevrîn Khalaf’s murder, the looting in Afrin, and massacres of Alawites and Druze being well-documented, no meaningful accountability has been achieved. The appointment of Abu Hatim Shaqra as commander of the 86th Division is essentially a reward for a war criminal, yet not even a formal condemnation has been issued by the ICC, UN, or Western governments.