Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham is reportedly causing problems in northwestern Syria today as their opposition activists claim the jihadist group is blocking a key highway inside the Idlib Governorate.
According to opposition reports, Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham is blocking the Turkish Armed Forces from establishing an observation post along the Aleppo-Latakia Highway (var. M-4 Highway).
The reports say Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham was preventing the Turkish troops from specifically establishing an observation post along the highway between the cities of Jisr Al-Shughour and Idlib.
Turkey wanted to establish this observation post along the Aleppo-Latakia Highway as part of their agreement with the Russian Armed Forces.
More importantly, this highway is an imperative supply route from Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham, who maintains control over much of the Idlib Governorate, including Idlib city and parts of Jisr Al-Shughour.
The Jisr Al-Shughour area is completely controlled by jihadist groups, including the foreigner-led Turkestan Islamic Party.
Turkey currently possesses twelve observation posts in northwestern Syria; they were established shortly after the September 17, 2018 Sochi Agreement between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.