Salem Turki al-Antri (), is a Syrian military officer serving as the leader of the U.S.-backed

Syrian Free Army The Syrian Free Army (SFA, ), previously known as the Revolutionary Commando Army (RCA, ), and the New Syrian Army (NSA, ), was a United States Army-trained opposition faction in southeast Syria. It has been hosted at the US military al-Tanf ...

(SFA). He joined the

Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...

, serving in various FSA units, eventually being promoted to colonel and appointed to lead the SFA on 29 February 2024, replacing Muhammad Farid al-Qasim. As the leader of the SFA, he initially focused on conducting anti-ISIS operations alongside the US-led International Coalition, before playing a key role in coordinating and executing the Palmyra offensive (2024) and the fall of Damascus, which significantly expanded the area under SFA control, up to 20% of the country.

Career

Syrian Civil War

He joined

Ahrar al-Sharqiya Tajammu Ahrar al-Sharqiya (Gathering of Free Men of the East), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sharqiya, was an armed Syrian rebel group founded in 2016 by individuals exiled and displaced mostly from the Deir ez-Zor Governorate and other east ...

, a

unit that operates in the

Syrian National Army The Syrian National Army (SNA; ), also known as the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA), is a coalition of armed Syrian opposition groups that participate in the Syrian civil war. Comprising various rebel factions that emerged at the sta ...

coalition. As a member of Ahrar al-Sharqiya, he fought in the

Battle of Ras al-Ayn A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

, before transferring from Ahrar al-Sharqiya to Maghawir al-Thawra, a FSA unit operating in

Al-Tanf Al-Tanf () is a U.S. military base in a part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate, Syria, which is controlled by the Syrian Free Army. It is located 24 km (15 mi) west of the al-Walid border crossing in the Syrian Desert. The surrounding decon ...

. The U.S. army provided training to the FSA factions at al-Tanf to help them fight the Islamic State. Maghaweir al-Thawra changed its name to become the

following mergers with other FSA units and changes to its leadership after allegations of corruption surfaced against a high-level commander in the unit. Following this, the SFA began “raising the combat level” of its soldiers in preparation for further battles with the Islamic State. On 29 February 2024, al-Antri was appointed as commander of the SFA, succeeding Muhammad Farid al-Qasim. As commander of the SFA, al-Antri oversaw operations in the al-Tanf region, near the U.S. military

al-Tanf Al-Tanf () is a U.S. military base in a part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate, Syria, which is controlled by the Syrian Free Army. It is located 24 km (15 mi) west of the al-Walid border crossing in the Syrian Desert. The surrounding decon ...

base, a strategic area near the Syria-Iraq-Jordan border. The SFA collaborated with U.S. forces in combating ISIS and maintaining security within the 55-kilometer deconfliction zone surrounding al-Tanf.

Fall of the Assad Regime

During the

fall of the Assad Regime On 8 December 2024, the Assad regime collapsed during a 2024 Syrian opposition offensives, major offensive by Syrian opposition, opposition forces. The offensive was spearheaded by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and supported mainly by the Turk ...

, al-Antri led the SFA units in al-Tanf in the Palmyra offensive. After defeating the Syrian government in Palmyra, the SFA, under al-Antri’s command, both assisted in the Homs offensive and routed the Syrian government to the capital

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

, in a battle that resulted in the fall of the city to the Syrian Free Army and

Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham facti ...

. al-Antri met with Syrian

Minister of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

Murhaf Abu Qasra Major General Murhaf Abu Qasra (), also known by his ''nom de guerre'' Abu Hassan al-Hamawi and Abu Hassan 600, is a Syrian military officer and politician who is currently serving as Minister of Defense in the Syrian transitional government si ...

on 9 January 2025, where they discussed the unification of rebel groups and "shared security challenges". On 29 January 2025, he led a delegation of the Syrian Free Army to a conference declaring the victory of the Syrian Revolution, but like representatives of the

Southern Operations Room The Southern Operations Room (), abbreviated as SOR, is a Syrian rebel coalition consisting of various Syrian opposition groups and defectors that initially operated in the southern provinces of Daraa, Suwayda and Quneitra, though they expande ...

, he still retained his forces and did not announce its dissolution like the pro-HTS groups.

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Members of the Free Syrian Army People from Homs Governorate {{Syria-mil-bio-stub