The abrupt collapse of Ahmad al-Awdeh’s forces in south Syria marks a major realignment of regional security dynamics in the region by removing a significant obstacle to new President Ahmad al-Shara’a’s consolidation of power in Daraa. In pursuing a divide and conquer strategy against hold-out communities, the new authorities in Damascus are in many ways replicating techniques long used by the former regime to crush opposition and expand networks of control. While this approach may prove damaging to political and social cohesion in Syria in the long run, authorities in Damascus appear increasingly hostile towards building a shared and democratic national project inclusive of all Syrians, instead replicating the failed strategies of the past. The 13th April agreement with provisional authorities effectively demobilized Al-Awdeh’s forces in the south of Syria and spelled the end of his power and influence in the region.
Dissolution of Ahmad al-Awdeh’s groups
Following months of tensions between Daraa militia commander Ahmad al-Awdeh and Syria’s new president, Ahmad al-Shara’a—fueled by frustration over a lack of power-sharing and inclusivity in the country’s ongoing transitional process and governance structures—al-Awdeh was forced to step down and disband the armed group he has led since 2014. His collapse followed intense military pressure from General Security in the wake of violence last week with Damascus-backed rival factions.
As part of its pressure campaign on the south, and after failing to sway prominent figures in al-Awdeh’s eastern Daraa stronghold of Busra al-Sham, HTS resorted to infiltrating the area through support to rival factions. Officials appear to have tasked al-Droubi—who defected from Shabab al-Sunnah in 2016—with establishing a local cell in Busra al-Sham, under General Security, to undermine al-Awdeh’s hold over Busra al-Sham and the rest of eastern Daraa.
Fearing an imminent attack, al-Awdeh ordered an operation against al-Droubi’s cell and moved to charge leaders of his group with drug trafficking. In the ensuing raid, al-Droubi and two other members of his group were injured during a firefight with al-Awdeh’s forces on 10th April. Although al-Droubi only suffered a leg injury, he died unexpectedly the following day as a result of his wounds, dramatically raising the stakes in the stand-off. The incident led to an eruption of tensions with al-Droubi supporters, with his fighters and family members taking to the streets in response. In turn, on 11th April, al-Awdeh’s forces sealed off Busra al-Sham and launched a second raid, arresting six members of al-Droubi’s group. Recognizing a critical opportunity to strike a blow against al-Awdeh, General Security swiftly deployed 1,200 forces near to Busra al-Sham on the same day as the clash. The movements appeared to represent the early stages of an all-out attack on al-Awdeh’s fighters, triggering a frenzy of back-and-forth negotiations between the two sides.
After two rounds of negotiations, al-Awdeh tentatively agreed to several key demands from authorities:
- Transfer of detainees from the al-Droubi raid to General Security custody;
- Handover of individuals responsible for the al-Droubi raid to a neutral third party;
- Authorization for General Security forces to enter Busra al-Sham and establish a headquarters in the Busra al-Sham Customs Building;
- Return of personal weapons previously confiscated by fighters affiliated with al-Awdeh in the towns of Al-Jizeh, Al-Musayfirah, Al-Sahwa and Saida;
- Accelerated submission of personnel rosters to the Ministry of Defense to facilitate military integration.
Immediately following these negotiations, 1,200 security force members entered Busra al-Sham, thereby ending any further negotiations with al-Awdeh. The fighters took control of six checkpoints across the city, established a new headquarters and took full effective control of the region with 400 General Security fighters now permanently stationed there. Al-Awdeh’s forces issued a formal statement on 13th April announcing their dissolution, disarmament and readiness to integrate into the Ministry of Defense. The statement confirmed the appointment of Muhammed al-Qadri as interim leader to oversee the transitional phase and winding down of the group. In the days since, General Security forces have confiscated all heavy weapons from the group’s warehouses and effectively ended its security presence in Busra al-Sham.
Post-Assad Security Dynamics
As former Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leaders and insiders largely monopolized positions of control within the new provisional government, al-Awdeh’s forces continued to maintain much of their autonomy in south Syria. His forces have been distrustful of calls for unilateral disbandment without a clear roadmap towards a democratic and inclusive Syria, while members of HTS’ inner circle increasingly moved to tighten their grip on positions of national and regional power. Despite ongoing negotiations to dissolve southern factions into a unified national army under the Ministry of Defense, progress had been halting and discussions marred by distrust on all sides. As such, al-Awdeh’s forces continued to pose a significant obstacle to the consolidation of HTS power in Daraa province.
Background: From Shabab al-Sunnah to the 8th Brigade
Ahmad al-Awdeh is a controversial figure in the south. Since commanding the opposition Shabab al-Sunnah faction from 2014, he remained a major figure in the politics and security of south Syria. Shabab al-Sunnah fought the regime for several years as part of the Southern Front, which operated under the umbrella of the southern Free Syrian Army (FSA).
Despite being classified as a “de-escalation zone” in 2017, the opposition-held south-west gradually became more vulnerable to regime attack—particularly after a wave of major victories for the regime, with backing from Russia and Iran, that saw Eastern Aleppo fall in 2016 followed by the last non-regime enclaves of Damascus in May 2018. It was only a matter of time before Daraa would come under attack. That happened in mid-2018 when the Assad regime, with the support of Russia and Iran, broke the south’s supposed de-escalation ceasefire and launched a blistering offensive over the course of just a few weeks. Russian-mediated surrender talks with the opposition, including al-Awdeh’s groups based in Busra al-Sham, led to a series of patchwork agreements across the south. Al-Awdeh reached a deal during reconciliation negotiations that allowed his group to maintain a level of autonomy—initially under the umbrella of the Russian-led 5th Corps within the Syrian army, and then later on as the 8th Brigade.
Al-Awdeh’s group provided a counter-weight to the regime’s heavy-handed aggression against communities in the south, while serving as the only counter-extremist and counter-narcotics force in eastern Daraa, carrying out missions against ISIS cells and illicit smuggling networks. His faction’s continued presence was widely credited with shielding the south from the wide-scale displacements and mass arrest campaigns witnessed in other regions recaptured by regime forces.
The regime again laid siege to Daraa in 2021, brokering a new deal through Russia that revoked the 2018 terms allowing local fighters to retain their small arms and preventing regime forces from entering Daraa. During this period, al-Awdeh’s groups operated with semi-autonomy in Busra al-Sham and the surrounding area, acting as a kind of buffer between residents and the regime. The 2021 siege and agreements continued to weaken the south’s former opposition. This was made worse when, following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow pulled back its presence in south Syria, resulting in decreased support for the 8th Brigade.
Though not part of the strategic planning leading up to the HTS-led Operation Deterring Aggression launched in November 2024, al-Awdeh’s groups joined the popular swell to oust Assad. Under his leadership, southern factions formed the Southern Operations Room (SOR), playing a key role in dispelling regime forces from the south. His fighters were the first to reach Damascus in the operation that ultimately toppled the regime on 8th December.
After HTS-led caretaker authorities assumed control of the country, they underwent efforts to unify Syria’s armed groups under a single national army. Talks between Al-Awdeh’s groups and Damascus began in early 2025, leading to the formation of the Southern Division of the Ministry of Defense.
