The British government is contemplating the removal of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) from its designated list of terrorist organizations, following the group’s recent success in Syria and the decline of the Assad regime.
This potential action prompts inquiries regarding the legal process involved in revoking the designation.
Since 2017, HTS has been classified by the UK’s Home Office as an “alternative name” for al-Qaeda, the militant group responsible for the 2001 World Trade Center attacks.
While Prime Minister Keir Starmer remarked on Monday that it is “far too early” to determine HTS’s status, Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden indicated that a “relatively swift decision” would be necessary, and the matter “would need to be addressed promptly.”
Notably, there is a precedent for the delisting of British terrorist organizations.
A recent case is the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), an anti-Gaddafi organization established in 1990 by Libyan veterans who fought against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan.
The British government designated the LIFG as a proscribed terrorist organization in 2005, characterizing it as aiming to create a “hard-line Islamic state” and being part of the broader Islamist extremist movement influenced by al-Qaeda. The LIFG has denied any affiliation with al-Qaeda.
In November 2019, the LIFG was removed from the government’s list of designated terrorist organizations, despite revelations that Salman Abedi, the perpetrator of the Manchester Arena bombing in May 2017 that resulted in 22 fatalities, had been partially influenced by members of LIFG.
Parliamentary Process
Following the ousting of Bashar al-Assad, there has been ongoing speculation regarding the potential delisting of HTS as a terrorist organization.
However, the government cannot unilaterally decide to revoke its proscribed status. The home secretary, Yvette Cooper, can only consider such a move if an organization or individual affected by the proscription submits a formal application.
The Home Office indicated that LIFG was delisted “after receiving an application to deproscribe the organization.”
Should an application for HTS’s deproscription be submitted, the home secretary would have a period of 90 days to reach a decision.
If the government opts to deproscribe HTS, a formal order must be presented to Parliament and approved by both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
Given Labour’s substantial majority in Parliament, it is improbable that the government would encounter significant challenges in removing the group’s designation.
There has been increasing advocacy for HTS to be deproscribed, enabling the UK to officially interact with the organization.
Lord Ricketts, a former national security adviser in the UK, has urged Britain to collaborate with its G7 allies to “conduct swift due diligence and jointly lift the prohibitions,” emphasizing that “the opportunity to influence various insurgent factions towards inclusive governance may be fleeting.”
Former MI6 chief Sir John Sawers has also advocated for the UK to reevaluate its ban on HTS.
He, along with others, contended this week that the organization has undergone considerable transformation in recent years.
In 2016, HTS leader Abu Mohammad Jolani (real name Ahmed al-Sharaa) publicly severed ties with al-Qaeda and has since committed to safeguarding minorities and honoring Syria’s diversity.
Sawers expressed to Sky News that he believes Jolani “has made significant strides over the past decade to distance himself from those terrorist factions.”
“Certainly, the actions we’ve observed from Tahrir al-Sham in the last two weeks reflect those of a liberation movement rather than a terrorist group,” he stated following Assad’s ousting.
“It would be quite absurd if we were unable to engage with the new leadership in Syria due to a proscription that is over a decade old.”
McFadden seemed to adopt a comparable stance, stating to the BBC on Monday that Jolani “has distanced himself from some of the previous statements. He is articulating the right messages regarding the protection of minorities and the respect for individual rights.”
He continued: “Currently, we cannot predict the future of Syria, whether it will lead to an improved situation for the nation or descend into further chaos; uncertainty prevails.”
“However, if stability is achieved, there will be a need to determine how to approach the new regime that may emerge.”
Conversely, Emily Thornberry, the Labour chair of the foreign affairs select committee, cautioned the government against hastily reaching a decision.
“The last thing the Syrian populace desires is to see one tyrant replaced by another bearing an Islamic flag,” she remarked.
Nonetheless, there appears to be a prevailing sentiment within the government that engagement with HTS is necessary.
According to the UK’s terrorism legislation, it is unlawful to organize or facilitate any meeting with the knowledge that it supports a proscribed organization.
It is also illegal to solicit support for or glorify a designated terrorist group.
Despite these restrictions, Downing Street emphasized on Tuesday that the British government can still engage with HTS, with Starmer’s official spokesperson stating: “The designation of HTS as a proscribed terrorist group does not preclude the government from future engagement with HTS.”
He clarified that engagement might involve, for instance, organizing meetings aimed at motivating a specific group to participate in a peace process or to assist in the distribution of humanitarian aid.
The Biden administration’s stance
It is improbable that the British government would remove the designation of HTS unless the United States took the lead in doing so.
The Biden administration is currently evaluating this issue; Middle East Eye reported earlier this week that officials have been discussing the potential benefits of lifting a $10 million bounty on Jolani.
Jolani has been classified as a terrorist by the US since 2013, while the HTS was designated as such by the Trump administration in 2018.
President Joe Biden stated shortly after the fall of Damascus that the US would consider “not only [the rebels’] statements but also their actions.”
However, President-elect Trump, who is set to take office in just five weeks, has indicated that Washington “should have nothing to do with it [Syria],” without referencing the Syrian opposition or the US’s allies in Syria.
The US supports rebel groups operating from the al-Tanf desert outpost, located in the tri-border region of Jordan, Iraq, and Syria.
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