UK to make swift decision on banned Syria group HTS, says minister

HTS’s leader Abu Mohammed al-Jawlani, who has now started using his real name, Ahmed al-Sharaa, cut ties with al-Qaeda in 2016. He has recently pledged tolerance for different religious groups and communities.

When asked by the BBC on Monday if a process to review HTS’s designation as a terror group was underway, McFadden said: “Yes, obviously that’s got to be considered. They’ve been proscribed for quite a long time now.”

“The leader of that group has distanced himself in a way from some of the things that have been said in the past.

“He is saying some of the right things about the protection of minorities, about respecting people’s rights. So we’ll look at that in the days to come.”

McFadden, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said the government was not aware of what is going to happen in Syria.

“But obviously if the situation stabilises, there will be a decision to make about how to deal with whatever new regime is in place there,” he said.

“I think should be a relatively swift decision. So it’s something that will have to be considered quite quickly given the speed of the situation on the ground.”

“A lot will depend on whether their statements about the protection of minorities and citizens are backed up.”

Former ex-head of MI6 Sir John Sawers elsewhere said it would be “rather ridiculous” if the UK was unable to engage with HTS because of the ban.

Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel said the Conservatives wanted to “put the Syrian people first” and called on the government to review the “security and defence implications as well as the terrorist risks” posed by the rebel groups.