Ahmed Hussein al-Sharaa-better known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani-wasn’t born under a rock. He came from a well-off Syrian family in Saudi Arabia, got a decent education, and yet somehow decided that jihadist sermons and the 9/11 attackers were more inspiring than textbooks and tolerance. When the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003, he ran straight into the arms of Al-Qaeda, joined their Iraqi branch, and became best buddies with none other than Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. And just to make it clear-this wasn’t your local prayer group. These guys were trained, brutal, and had blood on their hands. Then came the real twist-Jolani was arrested in 2005 and sent to Camp Bucca, a U.S. detention center that practically doubled as a terrorist networking lounge. Years later, released and back in Syria in 2011, he didn’t waste a second. While everyone else was either protesting Assad or running from barrel bombs, Jolani founded the al-Nusra Front-an official Al-Qaeda branch in Syria. He didn’t come to hand out aid packages. He came to rule. And when ISIS tried to absorb his group, Jolani pulled a slick move. He distanced himself just enough from ISIS to appear different, but still waved Al-Qaeda’s flag. By 2016, he “broke up” with Al-Qaeda, rebranded as Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, and later merged with others to form Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). But let’s not get it twisted-changing the name doesn’t wash the blood off your hands. You can call yourself anything. That doesn’t make you clean.
Fast forward to now-Jolani, the guy once labeled a terrorist with a $10 million bounty by the U.S., is sipping tea with global power players, rubbing shoulders with the Saudis, shaking hands with Trump, and making bold announcements about leading Syria. This isn’t redemption. This is reinvention on steroids. And we’re supposed to believe it’s all organic? Come on. Are we seriously expected to swallow this rebrand like it’s some spiritual awakening? The man didn’t find God-he found a PR firm. The only thing missing was a Netflix documentary titled “From Terrorist to Statesman: Jolani’s Glow-Up.” He was Al-Qaeda’s golden child in Syria, ran Jabhat al-Nusra with an iron fist, spilled more blood than ink in the region, and then-poof-he puts on a blazer, gets a camera crew, and voila! Now he’s Syria’s “leader.”
Then came the disgusting part: Jolani steps into the court of Yazid-yes, the same Yazid who slaughtered Imam Hussain at Karbala-and uses that space to declare himself Syria’s president. Have we forgotten who Yazid was? That’s not just tone-deaf-it’s spiritual sabotage. Did we all collectively fail history class? Is there an amnesia epidemic? Jolani choosing Yazid’s court to announce his power move is not subtle-it’s satanically symbolic. You don’t reclaim a land by invoking the oppressor of Karbala. That’s not statesmanship, that’s mockery. And it gets worse. Reports say the grave of Hafez al-Assad was dug up and his body quietly removed. Syria’s not just being ruled-it’s being ghosted. His body moved to an unknown location like it was some cursed relic. This isn’t politics anymore-it’s the script of a dark political horror show, complete with grave robbing, shrine desecration, and plot twists no one asked for.
Speaking of desecration, the flag of “Ya Zaynab” was ripped down from the shrine of Zaynab bint Ali-the granddaughter of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). You can’t get more sacred than that. Removing her name from her own shrine is not political cleanup-it’s spiritual vandalism. It’s like gatecrashing someone’s home and tearing down family portraits because you didn’t like the frame. You want to change regimes? Go take down some posters in your political office. Don’t touch the shrine of a woman who stood against Yazid when grown men bowed to him. She didn’t just witness conquest-she defined it. You bow your head in respect when you pass her shrine. But no, Jolani’s gang thought it was smart politics. It was spiritual vandalism, plain and simple. But Iraq responded with love and rage. The flag of “Ya Zaynab” went up in every other house, in the shrines of Samarra and Kadhimiyyah. People remembered who the real hero of Syria was-and it’s not the man in the tailored suit with a murky past and shiny promises. It’s Zaynab bint Ali, the woman whose legacy outlives every corrupt leader and crooked deal.
So here we are. Jolani shakes hands with those who once branded him a terrorist. He now talks about peace and reconstruction. Did he have a moral epiphany? Or is he a pawn dressed up as a president? A planted figurehead helping the old invaders dress up their invasion in new clothes? It’s not a transformation-it’s a transaction. Now, let’s ask the real question: What exactly did Jolani do to go from America’s most wanted to their possible handshake partner? Did he have an awakening? Did he suddenly grow a conscience? Or did he get the green light to carry out an agenda that others couldn’t do openly? Because let’s be real-this doesn’t look like a revolution. This looks like a backdoor invasion, dressed up in politics, polished with media, and sold as peace.
This isn’t a redemption story. It’s a geopolitical masquerade. And it’s insulting to expect the world to applaud while shrines are stripped, graves are desecrated, and tyrants are invoked like saints. The real conqueror of Syria didn’t need soldiers or suits. She walked in chains through Yazid’s court and still came out victorious. That was Zaynab bint Ali. That is conquest. This-this is propaganda and occupation. Simple.
Zaynab bint Ali will always be the conqueror of Syria. End of discussion.
