Syrian rebels form merger against Jihadists
Syrian rebels form merger against Jihadists
Syrian rebel groups have formed an alliance in the north in order to tackle a jihadist faction formerly linked to al-Qaeda.
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Syrian rebels have come under attack by Salafi-Jihadist groups (AFP)
Two Syrian rebel factions announced they were merging on Sunday, in an apparent attempt to pre-empt a broader clash with jihadists in the country's fractured northwest.
"We, Ahrar al-Sham and Nureddine al-Zinki, announce our merger under the Syrian Liberation Front," the two groups announced.
Both groups are Islamist rebel factions with a strong presence in rebel-held parts of the country's north, along the border between the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib.
Idlib province is held mostly by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an alliance dominated by jihadists once linked to Al-Qaeda.
In their founding statement, the Syrian Liberation Front called on rebel groups to join their new movement.
Sam Heller, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the merger was linked to HTS's growing power in northern Syria.
"This is an attempt to form a counterweight to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which is apparently positioning itself for a new fight with Zinki," he told AFP.
"Zinki and Ahrar are the two most substantial non-jihadist factions in the rebel-held north, and Zinki in particular has been an obstacle to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham's attempts to consolidate control."
Syria's conflict erupted in 2011 with protests against the government of Bashar al-Assad, but it has since evolved into a complex war.
The opposition movement has long been fractured, but mainstream rebels have struggled in recent years to fight off the influence of powerful jihadist factions like HTS.
"We, Ahrar al-Sham and Nureddine al-Zinki, announce our merger under the Syrian Liberation Front," the two groups announced.
Both groups are Islamist rebel factions with a strong presence in rebel-held parts of the country's north, along the border between the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib.
Idlib province is held mostly by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an alliance dominated by jihadists once linked to Al-Qaeda.
In their founding statement, the Syrian Liberation Front called on rebel groups to join their new movement.
Sam Heller, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the merger was linked to HTS's growing power in northern Syria.
"This is an attempt to form a counterweight to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which is apparently positioning itself for a new fight with Zinki," he told AFP.
"Zinki and Ahrar are the two most substantial non-jihadist factions in the rebel-held north, and Zinki in particular has been an obstacle to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham's attempts to consolidate control."
Syria's conflict erupted in 2011 with protests against the government of Bashar al-Assad, but it has since evolved into a complex war.
The opposition movement has long been fractured, but mainstream rebels have struggled in recent years to fight off the influence of powerful jihadist factions like HTS.
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