Who are the different rebel groups in Syria – and what territory do they control?
Syrian rebels have brought 24 years of Bashar al Assad’s dictatorship to an end in a single week.
Led by the former al Qaeda affiliate group Hayat Tahrir al Sham, the uprising was also supported by US-backed Kurdish forces, Turkish-backed militias, and dozens of smaller fighter groups.
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Here we look at who the various rebel groups are, who supports them – and what areas they control now the government has fallen.
Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS)
The ousting of Bashar al Assad’s government was spearheaded by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) – a former affiliate of al Qaeda known then as the Nusra Front.
Its founder Abu Muhammed al Jolani broke away from al Qaeda in 2016 in a bid to appear more moderate.
Abu Mohammad al Jolani at the Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus
It went through several name changes, eventually settling on HTS, and becoming the strongest anti-Assad rebel group around the city of Idlib in the northwest.
HTS is estimated to have between 10,000 and 30,000 members. The UK, US, Russia, and Turkey all classify it as a terrorist group.
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“They are an Islamic group that represents political Islam,” military analyst Professor Michael Clarke tells Sky News.
“Jolani claims they are simply Syrian nationalists that will be tolerant of all minorities. But they explicitly rule out democracy because that takes legitimacy away from God.
“So the best we can hope for from HTS would be some kind of ‘benevolent dictatorship’ with a tolerance of Syria’s patchwork of different peoples.
“But the chances of them being able to bring everyone together under a banner of Syrian patriotism is not great – so I suspect they won’t hold together for long.”
In an ideal world, Professor Clarke adds, HTS wants control of the whole of Syria – as opposed to rival groups who simply “want their agendas recognised”.
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)
SDF fighters fly their flag after capturing Deir el Zor in eastern Syria on 7 December. Pic: Reuters
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) formed in 2015. They are largely made up of Kurdish fighters who want an independent Kurdish state across Syria, Iraq, and Turkey – although there are Christian and Arab militias who fight for them as well.
The SDF is mainly made up of members of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which came about in 2012, ultimately taking control of large parts of northeast Syria while Assad forces took on rebels in the west.
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Many of the YPG’s fighters are veterans of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which fought for decades inside Turkey in a bid to establish Kurdistan as an independent state.
As Islamic State advanced through Syria from 2014 – the YPG held it back – which earned it, and later the SDF, the backing of the United States.
Kurdish fighters from the People’s Protection Units (PYG) fire at Islamic State militants in Raqqa in 2017. Pic: Reuters
“The SDF is the West’s main partner in fighting Islamic State,” Professor Clarke says.
“The US doesn’t want to get too involved – although like many Western nations, it is broadly supportive of a Kurdish homeland. So it helps with power and intelligence while the SDF does the dirty work on the ground.”
Professor Clarke describes it as “well organised” and strongest militarily in terms of “numbers and ability”, but adds that it “doesn’t want to take over the whole of Syria” – and is purely focused on the Kurdish struggle.
Syrian National Army (SNA)
Syrian National Army fighters drive into Sanliurfa province, Turkey in 2019. Pic: Reuters
After Turkey sent troops into Syria to push back both Islamic State and Kurdish groups in 2016 – a network of Turkish-backed militias formed and became the Syrian National Army (SNA) the following year. This grouping incorporated many elements of what was previously known as the Free Syrian Army (FSA).
The SNA then held an area along the Syrian-Turkish border – north of Aleppo – as a type of buffer zone to keep Kurdish forces out of its territory.
“Like the SDF, they’ve got an anti-Islamist agenda, but they’re aided by Turkey instead of the US,” Professor Clarke says.
While they were willing to join HTS forces to oust Assad – their agenda is ultimately “antagonistic” towards them, he adds.
The SNA currently holds territory along the Turkish border, which is split by larger SDF-held areas in the northeast and northwest.
Other groups
Celebrations after Islamic State took over air base near Raqqa in 2014. Pic: Reuters
There are many more smaller militias active across the country.
Although Islamic State was almost completely eradicated in Syria by the US in 2019, it still has some presence in parts of the country. The US Army has kept around 900 troops inside Syria to suppress any activity, with IS attacks becoming more frequent since 2023.
Various other wider coalitions of rebel groups exist.
The Southern Operations Group formed as a new rebel coalition amid this month’s uprising and comprises around 50 groups including Christian, Druze, and Alawite fighters.
Wider umbrella groups, with both Syrian nationalist and Islamist ideologies, have also existed over the years.
“Most of these smaller militias change name and change allegiances fairly regularly,” Professor Clarke says.
“But they’re all competing to have their own agendas recognised by whoever is going to do the top job.”
World
US blocks Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials from United Nations’ annual meeting in New York
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and 80 other officials have been blocked from attending September’s annual meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio has revoked the US visas of delegates from the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), and denied others from applying for one.
It is the latest step by Donald Trump’s administration to target Palestinians with visa restrictions, and follows the suspension of a programme to allow injured children from Gaza to receive treatment in the US.
Mahmoud Abbas addressed the general assembly in 2024, but is barred from next month’s meeting. Pic: Reuters
“It is in our national security interests to hold the PLO and PA accountable for not complying with their commitments, and for undermining the prospects for peace,” a statement from the US State Department said.
It added that, to be considered partners for peace, both groups “must consistently repudiate terrorism, and end incitement to terrorism in education, as required by US law and as promised by the PLO”.
Offensive will cause ‘intolerable deaths’
Several US allies, including France, Malta, and Australia have announced plans to recognise Palestine as a state at September’s United Nations General Assembly. Canada and the UK will too, unless Israel meets certain conditions.
Israel declared Gaza’s largest city a dangerous combat zone on Friday.
The army launched a planned offensive that has drawn international condemnation.
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Thick smoke rises from Gaza City after Israeli strikes
Foreign ministers from Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Slovenia and Spain released a joint statement saying the military operations in Gaza City will cause “intolerable deaths of innocent Palestinian civilians”.
Gaza latest: Israel’s Gaza City offensive condemned
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering in Gaza City while enduring famine.
An Israeli armoured vehicle in northern Gaza on Friday. Pic: AP
Palestinians ride a truck carrying humanitarian aid in Gaza City. Pic: AP
The Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Riyad Mansour, said Mr Abbas had planned to lead the delegation to the UN meetings and was expected to address the general assembly at the general debate, which begins on 23 September.
He was also expected to attend a high-level meeting co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia on 22 September about a two-state solution, a broad idea involving Israel coexisting with an independent Palestinian state.
The State of Palestine is an observer member of the UN, meaning it can speak at meetings but not vote on resolutions.
The State of Palestine cannot vote on UN resolutions. Pic: AP
US decision ‘contravenes international law’
The Palestinian Authority “expressed its deep regret and astonishment” at the visa decision, calling it “a violation of US commitments” as the host of the UN, and claiming it “contravenes international law”.
UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the world body would be seeking clarification in the “hope that this will be resolved”.
Hundreds of diplomats left when Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu began speaking at the general assembly in 2024. Pic: Reuters
The State Department said that the Palestinian Authority’s mission to the UN, comprising officials who are permanently based there, would not be included in the restrictions.
Under a 1947 UN agreement, the US is generally required to allow access for foreign diplomats to the UN in New York.
But Washington has said it can deny visas for security, extremism and foreign policy reasons.
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The death toll in Gaza has now risen to 63,025, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
It also reported five more malnutrition-related deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number during the war to 322, with 121 of them children.
World
Brazil implores businesses to attend major climate summit, despite ‘second thoughts’ amid Trump backlash
The Brazilian hosts of the biggest climate meeting of the year have implored businesses to attend in November, amid concerns some are backing away from the climate agenda into the shadow of Donald Trump.
In an interview with Sky News, Ana Toni, chief executive of the COP30 climate summit in November, admitted some companies were having “second thoughts” about the global switch to green economies because policymakers were creating uncertainty.
The US President Donald Trump has been attacking wind farms and waging tariff wars that could slow the transition to green energy.
Banks including HSBC and Barclays have ditched a net zero alliance set up just four years ago by Mark Carney, now the Canadian Prime Minister.
Ana Toni, Brazil’s climate secretary, is chief executive of the COP30 climate talks. Pic: Reuters
But even before Trump took office, tech companies were quietly dropping climate targets to prioritise energy-hungry AI, and other businesses were “greenhushing” their climate initiatives for fear of backlash.
In this environment, there are fears fewer business leaders will attend the annual talks, which are also being hosted in a city on the edge of the Amazon that hasn’t enough hotel rooms.
On Friday, the COP30 team wrote to business leaders urging them to “step forward, not back” and travel to Belem, despite “logistical challenges” and the “background of systemic uncertainty”.
Ana Toni told Sky News: “We are very concerned that the enabling conditions must be there so that the private sector can also deliver where they do best, which is bringing in technology, bringing innovation and accelerating the process of decarbonisation.”
In August the share price of Danish wind farm developer plummeted after the US halted its Rhode Island wind farm, while the British Tories and Reform parties are also attacking net zero.
Ana Toni met with King Charles and leaders of other COP summits at Clarence House last year. Pic: Reuters
But Ms Toni there is “nothing to panic [about], because we can see that the transition is inevitable,” citing major progress in China, India and Europe and Brazil.
Referring to the US’s withdrawal from the COP process, she said: “198 countries minus one is not zero. And we will put all our efforts of working with the 197 countries that want to go forward and want to protect their population.”
“Climate action is not only [still] cool, it is necessary,” Ms Toni said.
“We all need to face reality. We are going through a huge climate crisis… If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Companies understand that.”
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