Members of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), which is in control of the Idlib region, held ISIS gangs responsible for the assassination of Abu Maria Al Qahtani, one of the founders of Al Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front.

Al Qahtani died in a suicide attack in Sarmada in the north of Idlib.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) confirmed the attack, but no one has yet officially claimed responsibility. According to SOHR, "he was killed and two of his companions seriously injured after a suicide bomber blew himself up."

Al Qahtani was acquitted by HTS and released on March 7, after spending seven months in prison on charges of "treason".