Who is Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, the rebel leader behind Assad’s downfall – ‘Syria is being purified,’ he declares

Who is Abu Mohammed al-Jolani: Syria's rebel leader hailed the capture of capital Damascus from the government control a 'historic' victory. The leader's speech at the landmark Damascus mosque came after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reportedly fled the country ending the fifty-year long regime

"This victory, my brothers, is historic for the region," Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, now using his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa, said in a speech at the historic Umayyad Mosque on Sunday,  news agency AFP reported.

Mohammed al-Jolani speech came as Syria's president Bashar al-Assad fled – for Moscow according to Russian news agencies, unleashing celebrations across Syria and beyond, marking the end of his 'oppressive' rule.

Mohammed al-Jolani said the rebel takeover was also a victory "for the entire Islamic nation", in the video statement shared by rebels on Telegram, AFP reported.

"Today, Syria is being purified," he said, adding that "this victory is born from the people who have languished in prison, and the mujahideen (fighters) broke their chains".

Syria, under Assad, had become a place for "Iranian ambitions, where sectarianism was rife," Mohammed al-Jolani said in reference to Assad's allies Iran and its Lebanese proxy Hezbollah.

HTS has roots in the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, with which it broke ties in 2016. Declared a terrorist organisation by the West, the HTS  sought to soften its image in recent years.

The Assad government fell more than 13 years after a crackdown on anti-government protests ignited Syria's brutal civil war, which has drawn in foreign powers and claimed more than half a million lives.

Russian media reported that the ousted President had been granted asylum in Moscow on ‘humanitarian grounds’.

Who is Abu Mohammed al-Jolani?

Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, 42, gained prominence in recent days as he is credited for the strategic moves that brought an end to the long-drawn Syrian civil war, toppling Assad-led regime in less than two weeks.

Jolani, as described by media reports, is a former extremist who adopted a more moderate posture to achieve his goals. Analysts credited Jolani's changed attire to his moderation in ideology. The HTS chief has stopped sporting the turban as worn by radical Islamist preachers and is often seen in military costumes instead. At the Umayyad Mosque speech on Sunday, Jolani was seen wearing a khaki shirt and trousers.

“Jolani capitalised on the recent outreach he had conducted with tribes, former opponents and minority groups, brokering surrenders and ordering the protection of minorities," according to a recent profile in Financial Times,

HTS, led by Jolani, gained international attention after it led a successful campaign to overthrow Assad-led regime in Syria. HTS is the modern version of the al-Nusra front, earlier known as Jabhat Fateh al-Sham.

Jolani founded the al-Nusra front, Syria's branch of al-Qaeda, to fight the Syrian government in 2001. Earlier, Jolani led al-Qaeda in its fight against the United States in Iraq after it invaded the country.

Born in Saudi Arabia

Born in Saudi Arabia, Jolani later moved to Damascus, the capital of Syria. Jolani’s grandfather lived in Golan Heights, a region between Israel and Syria. Golan Heights was part of Syria until the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. Since then, Israel has controlled around three-fourths of the region.

Jolani has been politically active since teenage. In one of the interviews he had said that he was 17 at the time of second Intifada — the Palestinian uprising against Israel– in 2000.  "At the time I started thinking about how I could fulfil my duties, defending a people who are oppressed by occupiers and invaders,” he had said in the interview.

When the US sent its forces to Iraq in 2003, Jolani arrived in Baghdad to join the insurgency. In 2013, the US Department of State designated him as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.

(With AFP inputs)