A suspected US-led coalition strike on a site used by Uyghur militants in Syria's Idlib province on June 21 has renewed debate over the future of foreign fighters under the country's post-Assad government. Sources told The New Arab [10] on that an aircraft targeted a compound used by a faction formerly known as the Turkistan Islamic Party [11], in al-Zainiya area near Jisr al-Shughour [12] in western Idlib. While no confirmed information has emerged regarding casualties from the strike, Syria TV [15] reported that the site was largely empty. Preliminary reports suggested that a leader of Hurras al-Din [13], a former al-Qaeda affiliate which formally dissolved in January, may have been killed.
The presence of Uyghur fighters in Syria has been a presistent concern for China [16], helping to prompt Beijing military support for the Bashar Assad regime before it was overthrown in late 2024.
