Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS), which was formerly part of the Al Qaeda franchise, has instructed its fighters to stop posting videos of them persecuting Alawites, Christians, Druze and other minorities in Syria.
The group seized control of Syria following the collapse of the regime of Bashar al-Assad on 8 December, and HTS leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has been eager to present the group as tolerant and “moderate”, in a bid to build relations with the West.
However, in recent weeks, dozens of videos have circulated online showing HTS members persecuting Christians, Alawites and other religious and ethnic minorities throughout Syria.
Crimes committed by HTS militants against Syrian minorities include executions, torture, theft and stealing homes and farm lands.
They have also been numerous incidents of HTS militants burning Christmas trees, and they also destroyed a key Alawite shrine in Aleppo and executed all of its caretaker staff.
Other videos have shown HTS militants terrorising locals by firing their guns indiscriminately and calling Alawites and Christians “pigs” and “infidels”.
Amid concerns that these videos could sway public opinion in the West and potentially lead to military action against HTS, the group has urged its members to stop sharing videos of such incidents.
In a voice recording shared in an HTS Telegram group, a senior commander instructed all members of the group and its supporters to cease recording and sharing videos of their activities.
He did not call for an end to the persecution, nor did he condemn any of the incidents; rather, he called for a “silent massacre” of Syria’s Christian and Alawite communities.