Syrian rebel leader Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani has dropped the guerrilla alias associated with his jihadist past and used his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa in official communications issued since December 5, before the fall of President Bashar al-Assad.
According to the BBC, this move is part of Jawlani's efforts to strengthen his legitimacy in the new context, when the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leading rebel factions announced the capture of the capital Damascus, consolidating control over most of Syria.
Jawlani's transformation has been ongoing for years, evident through public statements, interviews with international media, and through Jawlani's appearance and movements.
Once dressed in traditional jihadist garb, Jawlani has switched to Western-style clothing over the years. Now, as he leads the attack, Jawlani wears a military uniform, symbolic of his role as a combat commander.
In a 2021 interview with PBS, Jawlani revealed that he was born in Saudi Arabia in 1982 to a petroleum engineer father. In 1989, the Jawlani family returned to Syria and lived in the Mezzeh neighborhood of Damascus.
Jawlani's jihadist journey began in Iraq with the al-Qaeda terrorist organization, IS in Iraq (ISI). Detained at Camp Bucca in 2003, Jawlani connected with Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who would later lead IS.
In 2011, Baghdadi sent Jawlani to Syria to form the al-Nusra Front, a clandestine faction linked to the ISI. By 2012, Nusra had become Syria’s dominant fighting force, hiding its ties to IS and al-Qaeda.
Tensions arose in 2013 when Baghdadi's group in Iraq unilaterally announced the merger of ISI and Nusra, declaring the establishment of the self-proclaimed Islamic State, and publicly disclosing its links for the first time.
Jawlani protested because he wanted his group to distance itself from the ISI's violent tactics, leading to a split.
To escape that situation, Jawlani pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda, turning Nusra into al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria. In April 2013, the al-Nusra Front became al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, putting the organization at odds with IS.
In 2016, Jawlani severed ties with al-Qaeda, changing the group's name to Jabhat Fatah al-Sham and then to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in 2017.
Despite its public split from al-Qaeda and name change, HTS remains designated a terrorist organization by the United Nations, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries. The United States maintains a $10 million reward for information on Jawlani’s whereabouts.
Under Jawlani, HTS became the dominant force in Idlib – the largest rebel stronghold in northwestern Syria and home to some 4 million people.
HTS established a civilian front, called the “Syrian Salvation Government” (SG), in 2017. The SG functions like a state, with prime ministers, local ministries and departments overseeing areas such as education, health and reconstruction, and maintaining a religious council guided by Sharia, or Islamic law.
To reshape her personal image, Jawlani actively engages with the public, visiting evacuation camps, attending events, and overseeing aid efforts, especially during crises like the 2023 earthquake.
HTS hailed the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan in 2021, citing the Taliban as an inspiration and role model for effectively balancing jihadist efforts with political aspirations, including making tactical compromises to achieve its goals.
