Ansar al-Din Front
Supporters of the Religion Front | |
---|---|
جبهة أنصار الدين Jabhat Ansar al-Din Participant in Syrian Civil War | |
Active | 25 July 2014 – 28 January 2017[1] |
Ideology | Salafist jihadism[2] |
Leaders | Abu Abdullah al-Shami[3] |
Area of operations |
Aleppo Governorate Idlib Governorate Homs Governorate Hama Governorate Latakia Governorate[4] |
Became | Hayyat Tahrir al-Sham |
Allies | |
Opponents | |
Battles and wars |
Jabhat Ansar al-Din[4] (Arabic: جبهة أنصار الدين, The Supporters of the Religion Front) was a jihadist alliance that announced itself on 25 July 2014, during the Syrian Civil War.[1] The alliance contains two groups: Harakat Sham al-Islam and Harakat Fajr ash-Sham al-Islamiya; it had declared that was not affiliated with any other "parties".[1] The Green Battalion was originally a signatory, but around October 2014, it swore allegiance to the leader of Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar and was integrated into that faction.[5] The alliance had attempted to maintain neutrality in the conflict between ISIL and other groups.[4] On January 28, 2017, it joined with numerous other factions to form Tahrir al-Sham.[6]
The groups involved in the coalition have diverse memberships; Harakat Fajr Sham al-Islamiya numbers mostly Syrians from the Aleppo area,[7] while Harakat Sham al-Islam was formed around a core of Moroccan fighters,[8] the Green Battalion mainly had fighters from Saudi Arabia[8] and Jaish al-Mujahireen wal-Ansar was formed by Chechen and other Russian-speaking fighters.[9] On 23 September 2015, Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar left and joined Jabhat al-Nusra.[10]
Timeline
- 25 July 2014: Harakat Sham al-Islam, Harakat Fajr ash-Sham al-Islamiya, Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar and Green Battalion announced the creation of Jabhat Ansar al-Din as an alliance between the four groups.
- 3 October 2014: Green Battalion merged under Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar.
- 23 September 2015: Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar left the alliance to join Al-Nusra Front.
- 10 December 2016: The two remaining factions in the alliance Harakat Sham al-Islam led by Abu Mohammed al-Baydawi and Harakat Fajr ash-Sham al-Islamiya led by Abu Abdullah al-Shami have completely merged under Jabhat Ansar al-Din name, the leader is Abu Abdullah al-Shami.[3]
- 28 January 2017: Jabhat Ansar al-Din dissolved itself and joined Tahrir al-Sham.
Groups
Harakat Sham al-Islam
Harakat Sham al-Islam (Arabic: حركة شام الإسلام, meaning "Islamic Movement of the Levant") is a jihadist group composed of primarily Moroccans that has been active during the Syrian Civil War.[11] The group announced on 25 July 2014 that it became part of the Jabhat Ansar al-Din.[1] It was designated as a terrorist organization by the US State Department on 24 September 2014.[12]
The group was founded in August 2013[13] by three Moroccan detainees who had been released from the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, Ibrahim bin Shakran, Ahmed Mizouz and Mohammed Alami.[14] Harakat Sham al-Islam first came to notice because of the role it played in the 2013 Latakia offensive.[15] The following year the group was one of the three primary factions, alongside Al-Nusra Front and Ansar al-Sham, that took part in the 2014 Latakia offensive.[16] Harakat Sham al-Islam also has a presence in Aleppo, being involved in battles for Kindi Hospital and the Aleppo Central Prison.[15]
The group's leader, Shakran, was killed in a battle with Syrian Government forces in April 2014,[17] along with the group's military commander, Abu Safiya Al-Masri.[18] On 12 December 2016 they fully dissolved into Jabhat Ansar al-Din.[3]
Harakat Fajr ash-Sham al-Islamiya
Harakat Fajr ash-Sham al-Islamiya (Arabic: حركة فجر الشام, Islamic Dawn Movement of the Levant) is a jihadist group that has been active during the Syrian Civil War.[19] The group announced on 25 July 2014 that it became part of the Jabhat Ansar al-Din.[1] On 12 December they fully dissolved into Jabhat Ansar al-Din.[3]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Syria Update: July 17 - 25, 2014". Institute for the Study of War Syria Updates. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
- ↑ "Control of Terrain in Syria: February 9, 2015" (PDF). Institute for the Study of War. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
the Aleppo Salafi Jihadist coalition Jabhat Ansar al-Din.
- 1 2 3 4 "Moroccan jihadist group merges with local Syrian faction". Long War Journal. 17 December 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
- 1 2 3 "Jabhat Ansar al-Din: Analysis and Interview". Syria Comment. 23 October 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- ↑ "Video: Saudi Faction Swears Allegiance To Jaish al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar Emir". From Chechnya To Syria. 4 October 2014. Retrieved 14 October 2014.
- ↑ "Syria Islamist factions, including former al Qaeda branch, join forces: statement". Reuters. 28 January 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
- ↑ "Syria's Salafi Insurgents: the Rise of the Syrian Islamic Front" (PDF). Swedish Institute for International Affairs. March 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
- 1 2 "The Syrian rebel groups pulling in foreign fighters". BBC. 24 December 2013. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
- ↑ "Chechen commander forms 'Army of Emigrants,' integrates Syrian groups". Long War Journal. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
- ↑ "Insurgent group pledges allegiance to al Qaeda's Syria wing". Reuters. 23 September 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ↑ "The Syrian rebel groups pulling in foreign fighters". BBC. 24 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Designations of Foreign Terrorist Fighters". US Department of State. 24 September 2014. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
- ↑ "Muhajireen Battalions in Syria". 13 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "After Guantanamo, Freed Detainees Returned to Violence in Syria Battlefields". The Wall Street Journal. 3 June 2014. Retrieved 5 June 2014.
- 1 2 "Abu Ahmad al-Maghrebi (Ibrahim Bencheqroun), un vétéran du Jihad mort en Syrie - Jihad veteran killed in Syria". Archived from the original on 2014-04-05.
- ↑ "Syrie: combats féroces autour d'un point de passage avec la Turquie". 21 March 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Former Guantanamo detainee killed while leading jihadist group in Syria". Long War Journal. 4 April 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
- ↑ "مصرع قائد حركة شام الاسلام ونائبه خلال اشتباكات مع قوات النظام". Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. 3 April 2014.
- ↑ "Minority Dynamics in Syria". Syria Comment. 29 July 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2015.