Social media-based fundraising campaigns by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) have become more prominent in recent months as the group continues to battle Assad regime forces in Syria.  

The group, sanctioned by the U.S. government as an alias of Jabhat Fatah al-Sham in May 2018, has controlled parts of northwestern Syria since 2015, having established a government apparatus. The region, anchored by the province of Idlib, is the last opposition stronghold in the country; the government led by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies, including Russia, have launched a full-scale assault on Idlib. The Russian military has troops stationed in Idlib, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said to Interfax.