On May 31, 2018, the US Department of State amended the designation of al-Qa’ida’s Syrian affiliate, al-Nusrah Front, to include Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other aliases. These aliases have been added to al-Nusrah Front’s designations as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act and as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) under Executive Order 13224.

According to the State Department press release, “In January 2017, al-Nusrah Front launched the creation of HTS as a vehicle to advance its position in the Syrian uprising and to further its own goals as an al-Qa’ida affiliate. Since January 2017, the group has continued to operate through HTS in pursuit of these objectives.” 

The State Department added that the amended designation “serves notice that the United States is not fooled by this al-Qa'ida affiliate’s attempt to rebrand itself.” 

The US Department of the Treasury added Jabhat Fateh al-Sham as an alias for al-Nusrah Front in November 2016, reflecting the terrorist group’s name change earlier that year.