Agreement between the National Liberation Front and Tahrir al-Sham in the countryside of Aleppo

  • Country/entity
    Syria
  • Region
    Middle East and North Africa
  • Agreement name
    Agreement between the National Liberation Front and Tahrir al-Sham in the countryside of Aleppo
  • Date
    31 Oct 2018
  • 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
    Abu Obaida kafarhour [Signature]
    al-Shiekh al-Hasan [Signature]
    Abu Aseer [Signature]
  • Third parties
    -
  • Description
    Nine point agreement providing for a ceasefire and territorial delineation between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the National Front for Liberation in the western countryside of Aleppo. It also provides for the formation of a committee to investigate the killing of the two prominent leaders of Tahrir al-Sham.

Local agreement properties

  • Process type
    Informal but persistent process
  • Rationale
    -> Local issues only; no external support mechanism; culture of signing No formally established mechanism supported the negotiation between the two armed groups. Moreover, this agreement cannot be linked to the national peace process. Indeed, both groups oppose the rule of Bashar al-Assad in Syria and reject the idea of a national negotiation to solve the conflict. Yet, it seems that both signing parties choose to solve their quarrels through agreements. Finally, this agreement is one of the several agreements signed between the two groups since August 2018 in Aleppo 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. First, the agreement does not involve local governance actors; and the signing parties themselves are not official state representative. Second, all parties to the agreement reject the national peace process, as it would maintain Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian government in power.
  • Name of Locale
    Kafr Hamra
  • Nature Of Locale
    Region
  • GPS Lat/Long (DD)
    36.255843, 37.081561
  • 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, In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

    Page 1, Praise be to God and prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of God, his family and companions, and his supporter, and after:

    Page 1, 3. Formation of an agreed committee to investigate the case of the killing of the two brothers Akram Khattab and Abu Trapp may Allah accept them, and hand over the suspects.
  • Grievance List
    The agreement does not clearly mention the cause of the conflict. Yet it seems to addresses the grievances that arose from days of clashes between the National Front for Liberation and the Organization for the Liberation of the Levant. This mainly includes the killing of two brothers who were prominent leaders of the latter group in Kafr Hamra, in the western countryside of Aleppo.
  • Cattle rustling/banditry

    No specific mention.

  • Social cover
    Page 1 , 3. Formation of an agreed committee to investigate the case of the killing of the two brothers Akram Khattab and Abu Trapp may Allah accept them, and hand over the suspects.

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful 31/10/2018

Praise be to God and prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of God, his family and companions, and his supporter, and after:

It was agreed between the brothers in the Jabhat al-Wataniya lil-Tahrir [The National Front for Liberation] and Hayʼat Tahrīr al-Shām [Organization for the Liberation of the Levant] on the following:

1. An immediate ceasefire between the two sides.

2. An immediate release of detainees from both sides

3. Formation of an agreed committee to investigate the case of the killing of the two brothers Akram Khattab and Abu Trapp may Allah accept them, and hand over the suspects.

4. The case must be followed up by a third party agreed on by both sides, and it is likely to be Anas [second name unclear] in one condition to work on the case immediately.

5. The village of Teqad to maintain its former neutrality and will host no security headquarters, checkpoints and security patrols, and [the signing parties] not to interfere in its local council.

6. The survival of the “Tekad grotto” in Hafs in the hands of Tahrīr al-Shām

7. The withdrawal of the Jabhat al-Wataniya lil-Tahrir from (Sheikh Khader) hill and Hayʼat [Tahrīr al-Shām] to return to it.

8. The city of Kafr Hamra remains to remain free of the headquarters of (Ahrar – Al-Zanki) and the brotherhood of ahrāru a-Shām [Islamic Movement of the Free Men of the Levant] to have the right to establish an operation room from the side of Lirmoun to Ekthar al-braz.

9. The outstanding issues on the ground to be [dealt with by] the leaders of the two parties to resolve them at the earliest opportunity.

Abu Obaida kafarhour al-Shiekh Ali al-Hasan Abu Aseer

[Signature] [Signature] [Signature]