ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Abdullah al-Muhaysini, an influential Saudi jihadist preacher in Syria, has emerged as a controversial voice commenting on recent fighting in Syria, including clashes involving Kurdish-majority quarters in Aleppo, labeling them as “conquests.”
Muhaysini, born in 1987 in Saudi Arabia’s al-Qassim region, holds a doctorate in comparative jurisprudence and has been active as a preacher since the early years of the Syrian civil war. He spent more than a decade in Syria, mainly in Idlib, and built a large following through sermons and social media, where he has more than 328,000 followers on Facebook.
He has expressed sympathy for, and at times close ties to, extremist groups including al-Qaeda and the now-dissolved Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS). Saudi media have previously described him as “takfiri and terrorist,” accusing him of promoting mass jihad and seeking to “Afghanize Syria.”
The term takfiri is commonly used to describe individuals or groups who declare other Muslims to be non-believers, often to justify violence. The United States has designated him for supporting extremist organizations and fundraising on their behalf.
Muhaysini recently drew attention after describing Syrian Arab Army operations against areas previously controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as a “conquest,” language that has alarmed Kurdish officials and rights observers.
After the SDF’s withdrawal from parts of Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa under an agreement, he said in a Facebook video: “I swear by God, when the war started in Sheikh Maqsoud, I said may God have mercy and let it not drag on and let not much blood be shed, but thank God it was liberated, and after that all those conquests followed, and Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor were completely liberated.”
The use of religious terminology such as “conquests” has raised concerns, as it has historically been used by extremist figures to legitimize violence against groups they deem enemies or “disbelievers.”
Rudaw reached out to Muhaysini for clarification on his remarks, but there was no immediate response.
Syria’s Minister of Endowments, Mohammad Abu al-Khair Shukri, issued a directive on January 18, urging mosques to celebrate what he also described as “conquests and victories” by Damascus-aligned forces in eastern Syria, an apparent reference to fighting with the SDF in Hasaka and Raqqa.
Muhaysini traveled to Syria in 2013, initially presenting himself as an “independent” preacher and self-styled Sharia judge who sought to mediate between armed factions, including ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra, later known as HTS. He later became a prominent figure within the Jaish al-Fatah alliance and maintained close ties with HTS before distancing himself amid internal disputes.
He is widely regarded as an influential jihadist preacher online and has played a significant role in mobilizing fighters during the Syrian war.