Syria: Is the new government in league with Jihadists?

Syria: Is the new government in league with Jihadists?

From Behind The Lines with Arthur Snell by Arthur Snell

May 12, 2026 · 39 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the new Syrian government and its potential connections to jihadist elements.

The new government of Syria, led since last year by former Al-Qaida commander Ahmad Al-Shara'a is allegedly a pragmatic, multifaith movement righting the wrongs of the Assad era. But might it be a front for more extreme jihadist elements? The escape of thousands of Islamic State militants under the noses of Al-Shara'a's forces points to a lack of concern at the very least. To discuss this I was delighted to be joined by Syria expert Kelly Kassis. If you would like to support this podcast please consider taking out a paid subscription to my Substack arthursnell.substack.com or if you don't want the hassle of a subscription you can buy me a coffee! ko-fi.com/snellarthur If you want to buy any of the books talked about in this show, please support independent bookshops by using Bookshop.org with this link: ⁠https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/behindthelines⁠ Thanks! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Arthur Snell

Guest: Kelly Kassis

Topics covered

  • Syria
  • government
  • jihadism
  • politics
  • Islamic State
  • Al-Qaida

Keywords

  • Syria
  • government
  • jihadists
  • Ahmad Al-Shara'a
  • Islamic State
  • Al-Qaida
  • Kelly Kassis

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Al-Qaida, Islamic State, Substack, ko-fi, Bookshop.org

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