HTS is imposing a sharia regime, silencing the population through sectarian policies, and targeting women and minorities.

On December 8, 2024, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew the 61-year-old Baath regime by capturing Damascus through its so-called “Deterrence of Aggression Operation,” launched on November 27, 2024. On the day Damascus fell, HTS leader Al-Jolani (Ahmed Al-Sharaa) delivered a speech at the Umayyad Mosque, promising “coexistence” and “embracing diversity.” However, in the five months that followed, from December 8, 2024, to May 10, 2025, HTS governance brought nothing but systematic oppression, torture, massacres, and suffering to the peoples of Syria.

HTS rule by the numbers: A record of brutality

The five-month rule of HTS has resulted in a grim record of sectarian massacres, systematic torture, and authoritarian repression across Syria.

Massacres and executions: From December 8, 2024, to May 10, 2025, at least 1,500 civilians were massacred in HTS-led attacks targeting Alawite, Druze, and Christian communities. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that over 400 Alawite and Druze youths were executed by HTS during operations in regions such as Latakia, Hama, Tartus, and the outskirts of Damascus. On December 25, 2024, for example, an Alawite young woman was shot and killed by HTS members during a protest in Homs.

In April 2025, armed groups affiliated with HTS carried out overnight raids in the Jableh district of Latakia. According to data from the SOHR, 150 civilians were massacred and 200 others were abducted. In May 2025, an attack on the Druze community in the Sahnaya district of Damascus resulted in the killing of 80 civilians.

These massacres expose the falsehood of HTS’s rhetoric of “coexistence.” The group’s history of ties to al-Qaeda and its jihadist ideology clearly reveal a sectarian policy of ethnic and religious cleansing.

Arrests and torture: HTS is currently holding over 5,000 individuals in detention centers it has established across Damascus, Aleppo, and Idlib. In these centers, 800 detainees have been tortured to death, and more than 2,500 prisoners are severely injured. Reports published in 2025 by the United Nations Office for Human Rights confirm that HTS employs torture as a systematic method in its detention facilities.

In the Damascus centers alone, 400 people have been killed under torture, while another 250 were executed in the centers in Aleppo. HTS’s use of torture is as brutal as the infamous methods employed by the Assad regime in Sednaya Prison. The group seeks to maintain control through fear and violence.

Abductions: During so-called security operations, HTS abducted 4,000 civilians. The majority of those kidnapped were taken from Alawite and Druze neighborhoods, and 45 percent of them remain missing. These abductions are part of HTS’s broader strategy to intimidate and silence minority communities. While this tactic was previously used during the group’s rule in Idlib, after the capture of Damascus it has been implemented over a wider area and with even more brutal methods of torture.

Displacement: More than 300,000 people have fled their homes to escape the oppression of HTS. United Nations humanitarian reports from 2025 note that minority groups have been particularly targeted. HTS’s discriminatory policies have triggered a major humanitarian crisis. This mass displacement demonstrates the group’s systematic targeting of minorities and its attempt to alter Syria’s demographic structure.

Violence against women: HTS’s so-called “morality police” units have forced over 2,000 women in Damascus and Aleppo to wear headscarves, and 400 women have been subjected to violence. Women make up 60 percent of the total displaced population, with 180,000 women having been forced to flee their homes. Psychologically, suicide rates among women have increased by 40 percent. In one tragic case, a woman in Damascus took her own life to escape HTS’s threats of torture.

HTS was already known for its systematic repression of women during its rule in Idlib. The group’s policies toward women reflect its broader attempt to impose a jihadist ideology. Al-Jolani’s claims to support women’s access to education sharply contradict what is happening on the ground. Women’s freedoms in public life have been severely restricted.

Repression targeting youth: HTS has targeted young people under accusations of being “pro-regime” or “oppositional.” As of May 2025, more than 1,000 youth have been detained, and 200 of them have been tortured to death. Reports from the SOHR in 2025 document HTS’s systematic detention and torture of youth.

At the University of Damascus, co-educational learning was abolished, and students were threatened. This crackdown on youth reveals HTS’s intention to establish long-term control by instilling fear and suppressing the next generation.

Genocide against Alawites and Druze

HTS’s sectarian policies have manifested in systematic massacres targeting Alawite and Druze communities. On December 25, 2024, Alawites held protests in Homs, Tartus, Latakia, and Baniyas against HTS rule. HTS forces opened fire, killing and injuring dozens of demonstrators. In April 2025, in Alawite villages across Hama, HTS summarily executed 15 young people in a village square, set homes on fire, and massacred more than 400 civilians.

During the same period, HTS blocked the Damascus–Daraa and Damascus–Suwayda roads, dispatched military convoys into Druze neighborhoods, and declared Druze people “infidels” through jihadist fatwas. These atrocities clearly show that HTS is implementing a sectarian cleansing policy, systematically targeting minority groups.

Discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities

HTS has provided essential services exclusively to Sunni Arab neighborhoods, while Alawite, Druze, and Christian areas have been systematically neglected. As of May 2025, 200,000 people are facing extreme hunger and thirst. In Latakia, 70 children have died from starvation and dehydration, according to United Nations reports from 2025.

HTS’s discriminatory policies reflect a deliberate strategy to alter Syria’s demographic structure. These practices expose the falsehood of the group’s “coexistence” rhetoric and reveal its systematic exclusion of minority communities.

International reactions and HTS’s image campaign

In an effort to gain legitimacy in the eyes of the international community, HTS leader Al-Jolani has employed rhetoric centered on “coexistence” and “religious freedom.” However, the realities on the ground have revealed these statements to be nothing more than a façade. The United Nations Human Rights Council has classified HTS’s massacres as “war crimes.” Despite mounting international criticism, the group has not changed its policies. This indicates that HTS has not abandoned its jihadist ideology but is merely adopting tactical discourse in an attempt to gain legitimacy.

HTS’s reign of terror and the future of Syria

The five-month rule of HTS, from December 8, 2024, to May 10, 2025, brought nothing but death, torture, and repression to the peoples of Syria. During this period, at least 1,500 civilians were massacred, 5,000 were subjected to torture, and 300,000 were displaced. HTS’s sectarian massacres, systematic torture camps, and authoritarian practices have revealed a regime even more brutal than that of Assad.