French jihadist Omar Diaby, alias Omar Omsen, suspected of having convinced many French people to join Syria, was arrested on August 30 in Idleb, Syria, by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group.

In a statement, the Firqatul Ghuraba group indicates that its leader "Omar Omsen, as well as three other brothers, were arrested after responding to the summons of a court" by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group.

The press release states that it does not have a clear explanation as to the reasons for this arrest.

Former Nice delinquent

A former Franco-Senegalese delinquent who became a preacher, Diaby worked in 2012 in a snack hallal in Nice, before joining Syria in 2013, where "he became one of the biggest recruiters of French people to Syria", explains Wassim Nasr, specialist in jihadist movements at France 24.  

"Among the people he recruited, some joined the Islamic State (IS) organization, others Al Qaeda, others participated in November 13 [attacks in Paris, Editor's note], others finally are returned to France where they were tried and served their sentence ", continues the journalist.

Author of propaganda videos, he proclaimed himself an imam.

In September 2016, the United States called him an "international terrorist".

Given for dead, he reappeared in a report on France 2 in 2016, then in a two-hour interview with Wassim Nasr for France 24 in February 2020.

During this interview, the journalist asks him why he is not targeted by drone strikes by the international coalition.

"France put a price on my head, Omar Omsen then told him. However, I never called for attacks in France and I even prevented them."

#Syria 🇸🇾 @ FRANCE24 obtained documents which show French #jihadists taking part in the fighting in #Idleb.

Journalist @SimNasr was able to interview #OmarOmsen, their leader.



He returns to the conditions of this interview ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/OXX76IABHP

- FRANCE 24 French (@ France24_fr) March 4, 2020

He spoke out against the Nice attacks which affected civilians, but nevertheless approved the attack on Charlie Hebdo in January 2015 in Paris, whose trial opened in Paris on Wednesday.

"Those who insulted the prophet were executed. We had to do what the Kouachi brothers did. I would have liked to be chosen to do that," he told France 2.

Unprecedented longevity in Syria

Omar Omsen spent seven years in Syria, an unprecedented longevity which can be explained in particular by his independence and his refusal to participate in fratricidal wars between jihadist factions in the Idlib region.

"Today, he has no allegiance to Al Qaeda, he has a real animosity against ISIS which has put a price on his head. And he has his own camp in Syria, near the Turkish border, in the Harim region, with other French jihadists, but also women and children. It is completely independent and works in harmony with the groups present there ", continues Wassim Nasr.

However, he has already been arrested twice by the HTS group before his arrest on August 30.

That day, he had left his camp with three other French jihadists "to settle a small conflict with another jihadist group, the Islamic party of Turkestan, in the city of Harim", specifies Wassim Nasr.

That's where he got arrested.

#France Omar #Omsen + 3 French jihadists were arrested around noon by #HTS during a meeting to settle a minor conflict with members of the Islamic Party of Turkestan #Syria #Idleb

- Wassim Nasr (@SimNasr) August 29, 2020

"An arrest at a lower cost"

"One can imagine that HTS stopped him there for not organizing a raid on his camp. An arrest at a lower cost in a way," said the specialist.

Since then, Omar Diaby has been detained by the group with the three other Frenchmen and his family has not been able to visit him.

It is mainly its independence that would pose a problem for HTS, which holds the Idlib region with an iron fist, gradually excluding all other jihadist groups in the region, including Omar Omsen.

"It is said that Omar Omsen has 'his own emirate'. And HTS wants everyone to submit to his law, justice and power in the Idlib region. They have raided several times and arrested several foreign jihadists, some of whom were handed over to Turkey, ”the journalist analyzes. 

"By attacking the various dissonant groups, HTS wants to establish itself as Turkey's exclusive interlocutor in the region", continues Wassim Nasr.

Turkey for its part, which does not want to come into conflict with the group, agrees to delegate these arrests.

Harim region, in Syria, near the Turkish border, where the French jihadist Omar Omsen was arrested on August 31 by the HTS group.

© Graphic studio France 24

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