Abu Hatem Shaqra

Ahmad Ihsan Fayyad al-Hayes , also known by his nom de guerre Abu Hatem Shaqra , is the commander of the 86th Division of the Syrian Army. He had previously served as commander of Ahrar al-Sharqiya, a faction within the Turkish-supported group known as the Syrian National Army (SNA).

Early life and education He was born in , Deir ez-Zor Governorate in 1987. He graduated from Mardin Artuklu University with a degree in political science and international relations in 2023. He has a cousin named Raed Jassim al-Hayes, also known by his nom de guerre Abu Jaafar Shaqra.

Prior to the Syrian civil war, he worked as a farmer in his hometown, and he also briefly worked in construction as a cement tiler in Jordan.

Military career Shaqra first served in Ahrar al-Sham until his expulsion from the group in 2016, being accused of stealing funds from the group.

Shaqra was one of the Syrian National Army leaders who met the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the Presidential Complex in Ankara in May 2018.

On 15 February 2022, Shaqra was appointed deputy commander-in-chief of the Liberation and Construction Movement, a merger of multiple SNA factions primarily from eastern Syria, such as Ahrar al-Sharqiya or Jaysh al-Sharqiya, on the same day of the organization's creation.

On 19 August 2023, Shaqra was appointed deputy commander-in-chief of the Syrian National Army's First Corps, following a meeting with First Corps and Ahrar al-Sharqiya leadership.

On 8 January 2024, Shaqra was appointed commander-in-chief of the Liberation and Construction Movement, succeeding Colonel Hussein al-Hammadi.

Shaqra attended the Syrian Revolution Victory Conference on 29 January 2025, and the Syrian National Army agreed to dissolve itself and its component factions, which includes Ahrar al-Sharqiya, and incorporate into the Syrian Ministry of Defense. Shaqra also previously attended a conference in December 2024, agreeing to dissolve all military factions.

On 5 May 2025, he was appointed commander of the 86th Division of the Syrian Army, a military division operating in Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Al-Hasakah Governorates, though the Ministry of Defense didn't officially announce his promotion.

His promotion to commander of the 86th Division was criticized by US State Department Spokeswoman Tammy Bruce, who said, in a press briefing, "The interim authority’s decision to appoint this individual who has a long record of human rights abuses and undermining our Defeat-ISIS mission to an official position is a serious mistake that the U.S. does not support", as well as SDF spokesperson Ferhad Şamî, who said that the appointment was "unacceptable" and that it risks "corrupting state institutions".