Syrian Revolutionaries Front
| Syrian Revolutionaries Front | |
|---|---|
|
جبهة ثوار سوريا Participant in the Syrian Civil War | |
 Logo of the SRF | |
| Active | |
| Ideology |
Non-ideological (overall group)[2]
|
| Groups |
|
| Leaders | Jamal Maarouf[1] |
| Headquarters | Daraa Governorate, Syria |
| Area of operations |
Daraa Governorate, Syria Damascus, Syria[2] |
| Strength | 10,000–15,000[4] |
| Part of | |
| Allies |
|
| Opponents | |
| Battles and wars | |
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The Syrian Revolutionaries Front (Arabic: جبهة ثوار سوريا, Jabhat Thowar Suriya, SRF, also translated Syrian Rebel Front[1]) is, according to Lebanon's Daily Star, an alliance of 14 more secular rebel brigades fighting under the banner of the Free Syrian Army, formed in December 2013, thus according to Arutz Sheva further sidelining the FSA and its leadership Supreme Military Council.[13] It was established as a response to the merger of Islamist Syrian rebels into the Islamic Front.[13]
Component groups
7th Division
The 7th Division was headed by the defected Syrian Armed Forces colonel Heitham Afisi.[2]
History
Following initial clashes, the Islamic Front and the Syrian Revolutionaries Front agreed to reconcile later that month.[14] The coalition is spearheaded by Jamal Maarouf, head of the Syrian Martyrs' Brigade, a member of the SRF based in Jabal Zawiya, Idlib Governorate.[15] The group has supported the Geneva II Middle East peace conference that is aimed at resolving the Syrian civil war.[15] The group has received financial support from Saudi Arabia, while the United States has reportedly given the group only non-lethal aid like food, medicine and blankets, in part due to concerns over its involvement in smuggling and extortion.[16]
100 members of the SRF's Wolves of al-Ghab Brigade were killed in clashes with al-Qaeda's al-Nusra Front near Jisr al-Shughur on 16 July 2014.[17]
In late October 2014 clashes erupted again between the SRF and al-Nusra in the Jabal al-Zawiya region of Idlib, over the following days, dozens of SRF fighters defected to Nusra and the group lost control of numerous villages as they withdrew their forces from the region.[18] Maarouf and some of his followers relocated to Turkey, however around half of his men in the region remained behind and accepted the change of control rather than fight.[16]
On 5 May 2015, some of the former members of the Hazzm Movement, the Syria Revolutionaries Front based in the north, Jabhat al-Akrad, the Dawn of Freedom Brigades and smaller FSA groups formed the Army of Revolutionaries.[19][20] Many of their northern members also dissolved into the Levant Front.
The group only now remains active in southern Syria, as a member of a Southern Front group. the First Army.
During the Turkish military intervention in Syria which started in late August 2016, some members of the Syrian Revolutionaries Front and the Hazm Movement in exile from Turkey crossed into Syria through Jarabulus.[21]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "FSA alliance pushes back against Islamic Front". The Daily Star. 17 December 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- 1 2 3 Lund, Aron (13 December 2013). "The Syria Revolutionaries' Front". Carnegie Middle East Center. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRKekmdPF24
- ↑ "Al Qaida rebels leave mass grave behind as they desert base in Syria". McClatchy. 6 January 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ Aron Lund (21 March 2014). "Does the "Southern Front" Exist?". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
- ↑ "Aleppo: Syria's Stalingrad?". National Interest. 22 April 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- 1 2 "Jabhat al-Nusra, IS clash in Daraa". Al Monitor. 16 December 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- ↑ "Syria rebels unite and launch new revolt, against jihadists". AFP. 4 January 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Al Qaeda seizes territory from moderate Syrian group". Reuters. 28 October 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
- ↑ "New Syria rebel alliance declares war on Al Qaida". AFP. 4 January 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Reinforcements rush to Aleppo as battles rage". The Daily Star. 9 July 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Al-Qaeda defeats Syrian moderate rebels in Idlib". ARA News. 2 November 2014. Retrieved 3 November 2014.
- 1 2 "Syria: New Rebel Alliance to Rival Islamists". Arutz Sheva. 17 December 2013. Retrieved 25 April 2016.
- ↑ "FSA, Islamist factions pledge to reconcile". The Daily Star. 18 December 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- 1 2 "Syrian rebels try to agree peace talks stance in Turkey". Reuters. 18 January 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- 1 2 "The rise and ugly fall of a moderate Syrian rebel offers lessons for the West". Washington Post. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
- ↑ "After ISIL, Jabhat al-Nusra announces Islamic Emirate in Syria". ARA News. 22 July 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Al Qaeda group seizes bastion of Western-backed rebels in Syria's Idlib region". Reuters. 1 November 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
- ↑ "#Syria: Seven FSA groups (incl. Jabhat Akrad, Shams Shamal & Homs Revolutionary Union) form "The Revolutionary Army".". Twitter.
- ↑ "#SRO - EXCLUSIVE - Former Hazzm and #SRF forces allied with kurds and some #FSA small units to create Jaysh al-Thuwar (in 4 governorates).". Twitter.
- ↑ "Threatens to exit «Arab factions» him: repercussions Turkish intervention shake Syria's alliance forces of democracy east of the Euphrates". Al-Quds al-Arabi. 3 September 2016.
