Days before his forces toppled Syria’s Assad regime, Abu Mohammad al-Jolani triumphantly walked up the steps of Aleppo’s medieval citadel, dressed head to toe in khaki and flanked by unarmed guards.
On that appearance in Syria’s second city, captured as part of rebel groups’ lightning offensive across the country, the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was swarmed by supporters.
Jolani waved at Aleppo’s stunned residents before getting into his white jeep and driving back to the frontline. He barely cracked a smile. It was a politically astute move typical of the ambitious 42-year-old Islamist who has spent the past few years in the throes of a political transformation.
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