A Russian Su-24 aircaft on a runway at the Hmeimim airbase in Syria. © Maksim Blinov / Sputnik
Former leader of the Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad, Sirajuddin Mukhtarov, was killed in the September 8 Russian airstrikes on the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib, Major General Oleg Yegorov, deputy chief of the Russian Center for Reconciliation in Syria, announced on September 9.
“According to the latest reports, leader of the Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad illegal armed group Sirajuddin Mukhtarov, who was behind the organization of terror attacks on Syrian government forces and civil infrastructure facilities, was killed as a result of a strike delivered by the Russian aerospace forces at a militant camp in Idlib on September 8,” the commander said during a briefing.
Two wave of airstrikes hit Greater Idlib on September 8, all of which targeted positions of al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham. The terrorist group is the de-facto ruler of Greater Idlib. Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad is a faction of the group.
Maj. Gen. Yegorov revealed that 20 high-ranking members of HTS were also killed in the airstrikes. According to the commander, the terrorists were in charge of “combat training of militants, and organization of financial and administrative activities of the organization.”
A day earlier, the Russian Center for reconciliation in Syria revealed that the Russian airstrikes killed more than 120 terrorist of HTS who were training in a camp in western Idlib.
Mukhtarov, also known as Abu Salah al-Uzbeki, led Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad until 2020. That year, he was reportedly sacked from his position by HTS leader Abu Mohamad al-Julani. The notorious terrorist went on to join Ansar al-Din, but he likely maintained much influence in Katibat al Tawhid wal Jihad which is mainly made up of Uzbeks.
In 2021, Mukhtarov was arrested by HTS for around nine months for no clear reason. Back then, Ansar al-Din, called the arrest “humiliating.”
Mukhtarov is reported responsible for the 2017 Saint Petersburg Metro bombing, which claimed the lives of 15 people and left more than 60 others wounded.
Sirozhiddin Mukhtarov in the middle of his fighters.
Syrian opposition news sources based in Greater Idlib have already denied that Mukhtarov was killed. However, most of these sources are directly or indirectly controlled by HTS. The terrorist group has been working really hard to keep its losses under wraps.
All in all, the last series of Russian airstrikes on Greater Idlib were without a doubt a major blow to HTS and its allies who sustained heavy losses.
- Greater Idlib Militants Shell Syrian Army Camps In Hama, Lattakia
- ISIS Cells Attack Syrian Troops In Raqqa, Deir Ezzor
How about some airstrikes on Kiev and Ukraine’s infrastructure you stupid Russian arses. You have really effed up in Ukraine in the last 48 hours and now look weak and pathetic.
Don’t believe Russians.
These fake religious leaders do have some fancy names for themselves. I hope his gravestone is large enough to fit it all in. Or they could just use ‘loser’.
Everyday Russian mod says this and that, the situation on the maps shows what is really going on.