Maysar Ali Musa Abdullah al-Juburi (Arabic: ميسر علي موسى عبد الله الجبوري; 1 June 1976 – 4 April 2024), also known as Abu Maria al-Qahtani (Arabic: أبو ماريا القحطاني), was an Iraqi Islamic militant who fought in the Iraqi insurgency and then in the Syrian Civil War. He was a commander and Shura Council member in Jabhat al-Nusra.
Abu Maria al-Qahtani | |
|---|---|
أبو ماريا القحطاني | |
 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Maysar Ali Musa Abdullah al-Juburi 1 June 1976 Mosul District, Nineveh Governorate, Iraq |
| Died | 4 April 2024 (aged 47) Sarmada, Idlib Governorate, Syria |
| Manner of death | Assassination by suicide bombing |
| Alma mater | University of Mosul |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Iraq (?–2003)
 Tahrir al-Sham (2017–2023) |
| Years of service | 2004–2023 |
| Rank | Al-Nusra Front and Tahrir al-Sham commander |
| Battles / wars | Iraq
Syria Lebanon |
Biography
editMaysar Ali Musa Abdullah al-Juburi was born on 1 June 1976 in Al-Shura in the Mosul District of Nineveh Governorate, Iraq. Prior to the 2003 war, he was a student at the University of Mosul[2] and a member of Fedayeen Saddam.[1] After the fall of the Ba'athist government, he joined the Iraqi Police in Mosul but later left and was eventually arrested.[by whom?] Following his release from prison in 2004, he joined the Al-Qaeda in Iraq organisation. While in Al-Qaeda in Iraq, he served as the head of the religious police.[4]
Move to Syria
editAl-Qahtani was sent to Syria with Abu Mohammad al-Julani in 2011 by ISI leadership on the orders of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and served on the Shura council of the newly formed Jabhat Al-Nusra organisation which was the Syrian branch of the Islamic State of Iraq. While being a subordinate of ISI as it was the parent organisation of Jabhat Al-Nusra, Al-Qahtani was a known vocal critic of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and made multiple attempts for the Al-Nusra Front to separate from ISI which caused a rift among members within Al-Nusra.[3][5] While advocating for a separation from not just ISI[6] but from Al-Qaeda as a whole, he expressed dissatisfaction with others in the leadership of the Al-Nusra Front including Abu Mohammad al-Julani. It is also alleged he considered forming his own group.[3] He was also known to be a supporter of Turkish operations in Syria even though the official stance of Tahrir al-Sham was against the intervention. He allegedly assassinated rival leaders in Tahrir al-Sham in an effort to support the Turkish operation.[7]
Al-Qahtani was involved in infighting between factions[2] as well as internal disputes in Al-Nusra itself, which caused him to later be dismissed from his position as general Sharia official in 2014. However, he was still very influential and close to the leadership of Tahrir al-Sham.[8]
In 2016, he was allegedly involved in the formation of Ahrar al-Sharqiya, which is a group composed of individuals exiled from the Deir ez-Zor Governorate, many of whom were formerly fighters from Ahrar al-Sham and Jabhat al-Nusra. The group took part in the Turkish military operation in Afrin.[9] His involvement and affiliation with Ahrar al-Sharqiya is unknown and has been doubted by many observers and analysts. However, a commander in Ahrar al-Sharqiya, Abu Ishaq al-Ahwazi, praised Qahtani in a 2016 interview.[10][11]
Al-Qahtani was jailed in August 2023 for alleged misuse of social media. He was released in March 2024.[12]
Death
editAl-Qahtani was killed in a suicide bombing in Sarmada on 4 April 2024, which Tahrir al-Sham blamed on the Islamic State.[13]
References
edit- ^ a b c "April 2014 Briefs – Jamestown". Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ a b c Haniyeh, Hassan Abu (15 December 2014). "Who's who in the Nusra Front?". Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ a b c "Abu Maria: The Nusra leader behind the split with IS in Syria?". Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "Abu Maria al-Qahtani: Deposed leader of Tahrir al-Sham". Center For Middle Eastern Studies. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ "Al-Qaeda in Syria Condemns Al-Qaeda in Yemen's Softness on the Islamic State". 20 October 2014. Archived from the original on 16 May 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ Dettmer, Jamie (4 May 2015). "Resurgent Syrian Rebels Aim for Assad". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "Abu-Maria Al-Qahtani… Turkey's compass to Adlib – ANHA". en.hawarnews.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ bfarhat (23 July 2015). "Internal divisions lead to 'hemorrhaging' of Jabhat al-Nusra leaders". Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
- ^ "Syrie: Ahrar al-Sharqiya, ces anciens d'al-Nosra devenus supplétifs de la Turquie". 3 May 2018. Archived from the original on 3 February 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2018.
- ^ "Eastern Syria fighters accused of brutality after videos emerge – Al-Monitor: The Pulse of the Middle East". 12 November 2019. Archived from the original on 14 November 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- ^ "US–Backed SDF Commander Killed in Eastern Deir Ezzur as Tensions Heighten". Archived from the original on 4 February 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- ^ "Protesters march in Syria against al-Qaida-linked group as a prominent militant is released". AP News. 8 March 2024. Archived from the original on 8 March 2024. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
- ^ "Top Iraqi jihadist killed in suicide bombing in northwest Syria". Reuters. 5 April 2024. Retrieved 6 December 2024.