Prominent Iraqi jihadist killed by suicide bomber

Members of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham parade through the rebel-held northwestern city of Idlib

A prominent Iraqi jihadist leader was reportedly killed by a suicide bomber on Thursday in rebel-held northwest Syria.

Abu Maria al-Qahtani, whose real name was Maisr al-Jabouri, died after being taken to hospital with wounds sustained in the explosion in his guest house.< /p>

Four others were wounded in a suicide bombing in the Syrian city, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor.

Qahtani was one of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham's most prominent commanders. is considered a foreign terrorist group by the UK — and its predecessor the al-Nusra Front, itself a former al-Qaeda affiliate.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for Qahtani's killing. However, HTS confirmed Qahtani's death in social media posts and blamed rival terrorist group ISIS for the murder.

Qahtani was released from prison last month after spending six months in prison on charges of «improper communication» following a falling out with other HTS leaders.

The fighting force numbers 15,000 fighters

He was born in Iraq and has previously fought against US troops following the US-led invasion in the early 2000s. He moved to Syria in 2011 to join the rebels fighting against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

HTS is one of the few remaining rebel groups in Syria opposing the Assad regime. attempt to consolidate dominance in this last rebel-held hotspot.

In October 2018, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a US think tank, estimated that HTS was designated a foreign terrorist organization by the US. 2018 in addition to the existing status of Al-Nusra Front since 2012.

The UK considers HTS, Al-Nusra Front and other al-Qaeda offshoots to be designated as terrorist organizations.