Agreement between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and Free Idlib Army

  • Country/entity
    Syria
  • Region
    Middle East and North Africa
  • Agreement name
    Agreement between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and Free Idlib Army
  • Date
    9 Jun 2017
  • Agreement status
    Multiparty signed/agreed
  • Interim arrangement
    Yes
  • Agreement/conflict level
    Intrastate/local conflict ( Syrian Conflicts (1948 - ) (1976 - 2005) (2011 - ) )
  • Stage
    Ceasefire/related
  • Conflict nature
    Inter-group
  • Peace process
    Syrian Local Agreements
  • Parties
    Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Abu Amar al-Filistini
    The Free Idlib Army, Damar Qanatari
  • Third parties
    -
  • Description
    Five point agreement providing for the formation of a judicial committee consisting of both parties related to the events of Marat al-Numan. Free Idlib Army will hand over all wanted persons to HTS. All Farqa 13 HQ are handed over to the Free Idlib Army. All armed groups in Marat al-Numan will be disbanded.

Local agreement properties

  • Process type
    Informal but persistent process
  • Rationale
    -> Local issues only; no external support mechanism; no culture of signing An agreement signed between a Salafi-Jihad group and a nationalist Syrian group is quite rare in the Syrian context due to the ideological divide. Moreover, the agreement relates to specific issues that arose in a highly localised context. If one takes Idlib governorate as the unit of reference though, a series of agreements have been signed in the context of infighting between armed groups for control over territories, resources and populations. An agreement was signed the two same parties two months before in the same governorate.
  • Is there a documented link to a national peace process?
    No
  • Link to national process: articulated rationale
    No link to the national peace process in Syria is mentioned in the agreement, neither it can be inferred from further research. The agreement does not involve local governance actors, and the signing parties themselves are not official state representative.
  • Name of Locale
    Marat al-Numan
  • Nature Of Locale
    City
  • GPS Lat/Long (DD)
    35.647825, 36.677642
  • Participant type
    Local armed group
  • Mediator, facilitator or similar
    No mention of mediator or similar

Local issues

  • Ritual/prayer and process (including use of scripture)
    Page 1, Praise be to God, and May His Peace and Blessings be upon the noblest of Messengers, and on his kinsman and disciples.

    Page 1, Praise be to God.
  • Grievance List
    Although the agreement does not refer to specific causes of the conflict, it lists five provisions to address local grievances.

    Page 1,
    1. The formation of a judicial committee accepted by both parties. This committee reviews the recent events that resulted in deaths and injuries in the city of Marat al-Numan. These events happened between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, on the one hand, and what was previously called the Farqa 13 [Division 13], and some other corrupted groups on the other.
    2. The second party, the Free Idlib Army, shall hand in all wanted persons from Farqa 13 to the Judicial Committee mentioned above.
    3. The Farqa 13 will be fully and definitively dissolved.
    4. All the headquarters of the so-called Farqa 13 are handed over to the Free Idlib Army
    Command except for the party building which will remain at the disposal of the city of Marat
    al-Numan Services Department.
    5. The disbanding and removal of all armed manifestations in the city begin with the
    implementation of this Agreement.
  • Cattle rustling/banditry

    No specific mention.

  • Social cover

    No specific mention.

In the name of God, most Gracious, most Compassionate

Praise be to God, and May His Peace and Blessings be upon the noblest of Messengers, and on his kinsman and disciples.

The agreement between two parties, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Idlib section and the Free Idlib Army is as follows:

The formation of a judicial committee accepted by both parties.

This committee reviews the recent events that resulted in deaths and injuries in the city of Marat al-Numan.

These events happened between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, on the one hand, and what was previously called the Farqa 13 [Division 13], and some other corrupted groups on the other.

The second party, the Free Idlib Army, shall hand in all wanted persons from Farqa 13 to the Judicial Committee mentioned above.

The Farqa 13 will be fully and definitively dissolved.

All the headquarters of the so-called Farqa 13 are handed over to the Free Idlib Army Command except for the party building which will remain at the disposal of the city of Marat al-Numan Services Department.

The disbanding and removal of all armed manifestations in the city begin with the implementation of this Agreement.

Praise be to God.

Released by Friday 9/06/2017

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Abu Amar al-Filistini

The Free Idlib Army, Damar Qanatari