Syrian security forces have launched an operation to arrest several wanted individuals among French extremists residing in a camp in Idlib Province near the Turkish border, according to reports from a French extremist, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, and Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Wednesday.

Jibril al-Muhajir — the son of French-Senegalese extremist Omar Omsen, who leads the group Firqat al-Ghuraba (“The Strangers Brigade”) in the town of Harim — told AFP via WhatsApp:

“The clashes began after midnight and are still ongoing,”
explaining that the fighting is linked to “France’s desire to extradite two French nationals from the group.”

Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said that “a large-scale security operation targeted the French camp in Harim after surrounding it, with the aim of handing over French nationals wanted by their government.” He noted that clashes subsequently broke out between the two sides.

Meanwhile, Firqat al-Ghuraba issued a statement denying the accusations leveled against it, asserting that the ongoing security operation against its camp in Harim “aims to tarnish its image” at the behest of the French government.

The group claimed that its members had detected an infiltration attempt by “fake journalists” allegedly working for a French TV channel, describing the events as part of an organized campaign against them and declaring that they “will not allow any force to enter the camp.”