Fatah Halab
| Conquest of Aleppo[1] | |
|---|---|
|
فتح حلب Fatah Halab Participant in the Syrian Civil War | |
|
Logo of Fatah Halab | |
| Active | 26 April 2015 – 21 January 2017[2] (in the Aleppo Governorate, until 1 December 2016 within southeastern Aleppo)[3] |
| Headquarters |
Aleppo, Syria (until 1 December 2016) Aleppo Governorate, Syria (from 1 December 2016) |
| Area of operations | Aleppo Governorate, Syria (from 1 December 2016 they are no longer active in the city centre)[4] |
| Size | +8,000 (16 October 2016)[5] |
| Allies | |
| Opponents | |
| Battles and wars | |
Fatah Halab (Arabic: فتح حلب, lit. 'Conquest of Aleppo'), or Aleppo Conquest, was a joint operations room of Syrian rebel factions operating in Aleppo, Syria. Succeeding the Aleppo Liberation operations room, its establishment was announced on 26 April 2015.[1][2] It states that its aim is to conquer Aleppo City from Syrian regime forces.[7]
In an October 2015 publication, the Washington D.C.-based Institute for the Study of War considered Aleppo Conquest as one of the "powerbrokers" in Aleppo Province, being both "anti-regime" and "anti-ISIS."[7]
Since the inter-rebel conflicts, defections and mergers which started on 21 January 2017, Fatah Halab has become largely defunct.
Member groups
The operations room includes both Western-backed groups[8] and Islamist groups. It includes some groups that also participate in the Islamist Ansar al-Sharia operations room, but not others, such as al-Nusra Front.[9] Previously al-Nusra coordinated with other groups through the Aleppo Operations Room.[10]
The number of groups participating increased after its founding, and by 18 June 2015 there were 31 groups.[11] On 28 July 19 FSA-linked groups joined it.
As of October 2016 they are around 8,000 fighters spread out over a myriad of groups of varying sized. The following are the largest groups that participate in the operations room.[12][13]
- 1st Regiment
- Liberation Army[14]
- 46th Division
- Levant Front
- Jabhat Ahl al-Sham
- Army of Mujahideen
- Atarib Martyrs Brigade
- Thuwar al-Sham Battalion[15]
- Banners of Islam Movement[15]
- Army of Mujahideen
- Authenticity and Development Front
- Fastaqim Union (mostly defunct since November 2016)
- Harakat Nour al-Din al-Zenki (until October 2016)[16]
- Sham Legion
- Sultan Murad Division
- Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror Brigade
- Free Idlib Army
- 101st Infantry Division
- Army of Glory
- Central Division
- Sword of God Brigade[17]
- Army of Islam
- Army of Victory[18]
- Alwiya al-Furqan (former)
- Conquest Brigade
- Liwa al-Haqq
- Jaysh al-Sunna
- Elite Islamic Battalions[19]
- Islamic Freedom Brigade
- Dawn of Caliphate Battalions
- Bayan Movement
- 16th Division (defunct since July 2016)
War crimes
On 13 May 2016, Amnesty International accused the Fatah Halab coalition of "repeated indiscriminate attacks that may amount to war crimes". It also reported their alleged use of chemical weapons.[20]
A United Nations report in February 2017 came to the conclusion that during the siege of Eastern Aleppo Fatah Halab, after vowing to take revenge on the Kurds in Sheikh Maqsoud, intentionally attacked civilian inhabited neighbourhoods of the Kurdish enclave, killing and maiming dozens of civilians, and that these acts constitute the war crime of directing attacks against a civilian population. [21] [22]
See also
References
- 1 2 Masi, Alessandria (26 April 2015). "Syria’s coming battle for Aleppo: It's everybody against Assad and ISIS". International Business Times. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- 1 2 Bisaccio, Derek (26 April 2015). "Aleppo city operation". Foreign Policy Talk. Archived from the original on 3 July 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- ↑ "فتح حلب بيان رقم -41". 1 November 2016.
- 1 2 "Syria: Coming together to fight Assad in Aleppo". al-Araby al-Jadeed. 8 May 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- ↑ "The Latest: UN Syria envoy: Some 8,000 rebels left in Aleppo". Associated Press. 6 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
- ↑ "YPG, allies clash with Syrian opposition groups in Aleppo". Middle East Eye. 29 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
- 1 2 Cafarella & Casagrande 2015, p. 3.
- ↑ "Syria military resists major rebel assault in Aleppo". BBC News. 3 July 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
- ↑ Joscelyn, Thomas (3 July 2015). "Al Nusrah Front, allies form new coalition for battle in Aleppo". The Long War Journal. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
- ↑ Jamie Dettmer (27 January 2015). "Exclusive: Obama Cuts Off Syrian Rebels’ Cash". The Daily Beast.
- ↑ "Infographic: "Fatah Halab" military operations room – coalition of 31 rebel factions". Archicivilians. 18 June 2015. Archived from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- ↑ Cafarella & Casagrande 2015, pp. 8–13
- ↑ Story, AP. "Associated Press".
- ↑ "Syrian Civil War factions".
- 1 2 Al-Tamimi, Aymenn Jawad. "Syrian Rebel Mergers: A Harakat Nour Al-Din Al-Zinki Perspective".
- ↑ "Harakat Nour al-Din al-Zenki". Civil War al-Sham. 17 October 2016.
- ↑ Roche, Cody (17 November 2016). "Syrian Opposition group infographics [updates]".
- ↑ جيش النصر (5 May 2016). "جيش النصر -- استهداف معاقل قوات النظام بقذائف الدبابات في جمعية الزهراء بمدينة حلب" – via YouTube.
- ↑ فرقة الصفوة (3 February 2016). "فتح حلب-- أكثر من 100 قتيل لعصابات الأسد بمحيط قرية معرستة لمحاولتهم اقتحام القرية وتصدي الثوار لهم." – via YouTube.
- ↑ "Syria: armed opposition group committing war crimes in Aleppo - new evidence". Amnesty International UK. 13 May 2016. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
- ↑ "Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic" (PDF). United Nations. 2017-02-02. Retrieved 2017-03-01.
- ↑ "UN says Syrian rebel shelling of Kurds ‘a war crime’". ARA News. 2017-03-02. Retrieved 2017-03-02.
Sources
- Jennifer Cafarella; Genevieve Casagrande (7 October 2015). "Syrian Opposition Guide" (PDF). Backgrounder. Institute for the Study of War.
