The group has held tensions with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham on numerous occasions but has largely avoided armed confrontation with HTS, with most of the tensions being confined to media campaigns against each other. In January 2019, the Guardians of Religion Organization accused HTS of being involved in a secret plan to establish a military council under the control of the mainstream Syrian opposition including ex-government defectors, that would be supervised by Turkey, the Guardians of Religion Organization also claimed that HTS was willing to open the M5 highway to traffic from government-held areas. Though holding tensions with HTS, the leadership of the Guardians of Religion Organization is respected among HTS members, reportedly causing hesitance for the two to openly fight eachother, and HTS adopting a policy of containing the group rather than confronting it in open conflict. On 7 February 2019, members of the Guardians of Religion Organization shot at a car with HTS members inside following tensions in January. The Guardians of Religion Organization later signed an agreement following the incident, and the Guardians of Religion Organization apologized for killing an HTS member killed by the gunfire. Over the following days afterwards several agreements were made between HTS and the Guardians of Religion Organization to deescelate tensions between the two. In late October 2019, a faction of the Guardians of Religion Organization led by a cleric named Abu al-Yaman al-Wazzani separated from the Guardians of Religion Organization, and formed a new group called Ansar al-Haq. Wazzani and his supporters claimed that the Guardians of Religion Organization had not held up obligations that they believe the Guardians of Religion Organization promised to uphold, and believed the Guardians of Religion Organization was lacking in the enforcement of Sharia law, followers of Wazzani were mostly reported to be former Jund al-Aqsa and Faylaq al-Sham fighters. Ansar al-Haq was also critical of HTS and its relaxed policy regarding Sharia, believing that HTS allowed immorality and did not implement justice, and also viewed HTS as an oppressive body. After the formation of Ansar al-Haq, HTS arrested Wazzani and his followers. HTS also holds tensions with Jaysh Khorasan, a group close to the Guardians of Religion Organization. It is thought by the Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center that the formation of the group will weaken HTS. Alexander Sehmer of the Jamestown Foundation has stated that Guardians of the Religion Organization gives Al Qaeda the best opportunity to improve its fortunes in Syria.