Ahmed al-Sharaa

Ahmed al-Sharaa
أحمد الشرع
Al-Sharaa in 2024
President of Syria
Transitional
Assumed office 29 January 2025
Prime Minister	Mohammed al-Bashir
Preceded by	Bashar al-Assad[a]
Emir of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham
In office 1 October 2017 – 29 January 2025
Preceded by	Abu Jaber Shaykh
Emir of the al-Nusra Front[b]
In office 23 January 2012 – 28 January 2017
Personal details
Born	Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa (1982-10-29) 29 October 1982 (age 42) Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Political party	Independent
Other political affiliations	Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (2017–2025)
Spouse	Latifa al-Droubi
Children	3
Parent	Hussein al-Sharaa (father)
Relatives	Maher al-Sharaa (brother)
Signature
Nickname	Abu Mohammad al-Julani
Military career
Allegiance	Syrian transitional government (2024–present) Formerly Al-Qaeda (2003–2016)[1] Al-Qaeda in Iraq (2004–2006) Mujahideen Shura Council (January 2006 – October 2006) Islamic State of Iraq (October 2006 – 23 January 2012)[2][3][4] Al-Nusra Front (2012–2016) Jabhat Fateh al-Sham (2016–2017) Syrian Salvation Government (2017–2024) Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (2017–2025)
Years of service	2003–present
Rank	Commander-in-chief (HTS)
Battles / wars	See list Iraq War Iraqi insurgency 2003–2006 phase Syrian civil war Inter-rebel conflict 2016 Idlib clashes 2017 Idlib clashes 2020 Idlib clashes 2021 Idlib clashes 2022 Aleppo clashes 2014 Idlib offensive 2015 Idlib offensive 2017 Hama offensive Northwestern Syria campaign (October 2017–February 2018) Idlib demilitarization (2018–2019) 2018 Aleppo clashes Dawn of Idlib Dawn of Idlib 2 2024 Syrian opposition offensives Battle of Aleppo Hama offensive Homs offensive
^ Office vacant from 8 December 2024 to 28 January 2025. Before his appointment as president, al-Sharaa served as the country's de facto leader ^ Renamed "Jabhat Fateh al-Sham" from 28 July 2016

This article is part of a series about Ahmed al-Sharaa
Political offices President of Syria (2025–present) Syria de facto leader (2024–2025) Emir of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (2017–2025) Syrian civil war Syrian Salvation Government Opposition offensives Aleppo Hama Homs Damascus Fall of the Assad regime Israeli invasion of Syria Hezbollah–Syria clashes Assad loyalist insurgency Transitional government Mohammed al-Bashir Presidential trips 2025 Syrian Victory Conference Family Latifa al-Droubi (wife) Hussein al-Sharaa (father) Maher al-Sharaa (brother)
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Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa^[a] (born 29 October 1982), also known by the nom de guerre^[b] Abu Mohammad al-Julani,^[c] is a Syrian revolutionary, military commander, and politician who has served as the president of Syria since 29 January 2025.

Ahhmed al-Sharaa was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to a Syrian Sunni Muslim family from the Golan Heights. He grew up in the capital, Damascus. Al-Sharaa joined al-Qaeda in Iraq shortly before the 2003 invasion of Iraq and fought for three years in the Iraqi insurgency. American forces captured and imprisoned him from 2006 to 2011. His release coincided with the Syrian Revolution against the Ba'athist dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad.

Al-Sharaa created the al-Nusra Front in 2012 with the support of al-Qaeda to fight the Assad regime in the Syrian civil war. As emir of the al-Nusra Front, al-Sharaa built a stronghold in the northwestern Idlib Governorate. He resisted Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's attempts to merge al-Nusra with the Islamic State, leading to war between the two groups. In 2016, al-Sharaa cut al-Nusra's ties with al-Qaeda. Since breaking with al-Qaeda, he has sought international legitimacy by focusing on governance in Syria rather than transnational jihadism.

Al-Sharaa merged al-Nusra with other organizations to form Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in 2017. He served as the emir of HTS from 2017 to 2025 and established a technocratic administration known as the Syrian Salvation Government in the territory it controlled in Idlib Governorate. The Syrian Salvation Government collected taxes, provided public services, and issued identity cards to residents, though it faced protests and criticism within Idlib for authoritarian tactics and suppressing dissent. In recent years, al-Sharaa has presented a more moderate view of himself, suggesting he has no urge to wage war against Western nations, and has vowed to protect Syria's minorities.

Al-Sharaa played a key role in the 2024 Syrian opposition offensives which led to the fall of the Assad regime and the establishment of the Syrian transitional government. As the emir of HTS, al-Sharaa launched an 11-day offensive against the Assad regime in November 2024 which saw swift victories in Aleppo, Hama, Homs, and Damascus. After Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia on 8 December 2024, al-Sharaa became Syria's de facto leader until his appointment as president on 29 January 2025 during the Syrian Victory Conference. President al-Sharaa ordered the dissolution of HTS and all other armed groups as well as the Syrian Ba'ath Party upon assuming office.

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