{UAH} Explainer: Who are the jihadist groups fighting in Syria's Idlib?

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BBC MONITORINGPUBLISHED 13 JAN 2018 16:14

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Explainer: Who are the jihadist groups fighting in Syria's Idlib?

BY BBC MONITORING

The al-Qaeda banner in the Jaysh al-Badiya image received a lot of jihadist attention

In recent days an array of militant factions, both rebel and jihadist, have been fighting against the Syrian army in Idlib, the last opposition-held province in the country. 

The government's 7 January advance against opposition factions in Idlib's southern countryside prompted a blame game among militant groups as to who was responsible for the setback.

It also brought some groups together, most of whom have mobilised under two main military campaigns that have been fighting a common enemy, the Syrian government: the rebel-focused "Thwarting Tyranny" campaign and a jihadist campaign dubbed "God Can Defeat Them".

Jihadists who are vying for control in northern Syria and are keen to prove they are a more effective force than their rebel rivals, have been highlighting their role in the fighting in and around Idlib.

Despite their efforts to take the upper hand against the Syrian army, these jihadist groups are fragmented and are partly using their involvement in the Idlib battle as a PR stunt in the intra-jihadist power struggle in Syria. Despite jihadist reports that some of these groups are fighting together, in most cases each group is largely reporting its "achievements" without crediting others.  

Al-Malahim

The Idlib battle has also presented an opportunity for jihadist newcomers Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim to assert their presence in Syria and flaunt their links with al-Qaeda. The two groups possibly form the nucleus for a forthcoming new al-Qaeda entity in Syria.   

This explainer lists the key jihadist groups currently fighting in Idlib in a complex scene of mutli-faceted rivalries. 

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Hayat Tahrir al-Sham 

HTS logo

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is al-Qaeda's former affiliate Nusra Front. The group became the most dominant force in Idlib after it pushed out its former rebel partners in July 2017, consolidating its power in the province. 

HTS has fallen out with its former patron, al-Qaeda, over the latter's public announcement in late 2017 that it disapproved of the severing of ties between the two groups in July 2016, which at the time had been presented as a mutual agreement. 

The falling out has split the al-Qaeda camp in Syria, forcing groups and prominent jihadist figures to take sides. It has also resulted in defections in HTS's ranks (including the two groups below, Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim). This has complicated the scene regarding who is fighting with whom.

The Syrian government's advance in Idlib on 7 January prompted HTS's rivals - both al-Qaeda hard-liners and the rebel groups it had crushed last year - to blame the group for the loss of territory. In return, HTS accused rebel groups of selling out on Idlib through political deals made in the Kazakh capital Astana last year.

Since 10 January, HTS's news outlet Iba (t.em/Ebaa_Aagency, 37,801 members) has been keen to show that the group's militants were fiercely fighting to regain areas they had lost days earlier.

On 11 January, when jihadists and rebels rejoiced at clawing back some villages from government forces in Idlib, Iba said "the mujahidin" had regained the villages of al-Khuwain, Ard al-Zarzour, Atshan,al-Mushayrifah, al-Jad'aniya, al-Hamdaniya in Idlib's southern countryside.

The following day it said HTS militants had seized the villages of Rabi'ah and al-Khuraybah, and reported suicide attacks in the strategic town of Sinjar in the southeast of Idlib province.

Other jihadist and rebel groups have also claimed credit for recapturing most of these villages. While HTS has not acknowledged these groups' involvement, its news outlet Iba occasionally referred to the "God Can Defeat Them" campaign in the effort.

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Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim

Jaysh al-Badiya logo

Jaysh al-Badiya (Army of Badiya) and al-Malahim (Epic Battles) are two small jihadist factions that had defected from HTS in late 2017 over its falling out with al-Qaeda, to whom they are clearly loyal. (See report) 

Al-Qaeda hard-liners online have been strongly promoting the two groups, both of whom have recently been developing their media presence and branding.

Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim have indicated they are fighting alongside each other in southern Idlib, with some of their propaganda featuring the names of both groups. The two have also occasionally mentioned the Turkistan Islamic Party (see below) as being part of their efforts.

Through its channel on the messaging app Telegram (t.me/Arebadea257, 2813 members), Jaysh al-Badiya has been strongly promoting its role in the southern Idlib fighting, providing a regular barrage of multimedia updates with the group's distinct branding and logo. 

One picture that received wide jihadist attention on 12 January showed a Jaysh al-Badiya tank with the al-Qaeda banner and inscription on it. The banner also featured in a video released later that day that bore the logos of both Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim. 

Although the groups have been suspected to be affiliated with al-Qaeda, this was the first clear sign supporting such a link.

Some high-profile al-Qaeda media operatives and figures on Telegram on 12 January pointed to the "beauty" of the al-Qaeda banner "fluttering" on the Syria battlefront and making its presence known loud and clear.

Jaysh al-Badiya has also put out videos of its training camps and operations, in an apparent show of its force, and released images on 12 January paying tribute to its fallen militants in the Idlib battle. 

(See our profile of Jaysh al-Badiya and its propagnda.) 

Al-Malahim, which reportedly defected from HTS in November, is catching up with Jaysh al-Badiya's media operation, and is now releasing its own distinct statements and material.

On 11 January it issued a statement saying it was fighting in southern Idlib alongside Jaysh al-Badiya. The statement made no reference to HTS, even though the latter was also involved in the same battle, which confirmed the ongoing cold war between these groups.

Al-Malahim logo

Interestingly, on the subject of the recapture of al-Mushayrifah village, which HTS had also claimed taking, the al-Malahim statement said its and Jaysh al-Badiya's militants had "withdrawn" after "liberating" it. 

This appeared to be an effort to honour a recent deal between HTS and al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria stipulating that the latter would not take over HTS territory. (See report)

Al-Malahim's official channel on Telegram (t.me/malahim1, 1760 members), which has been active since 24 December, has been widely promoted by high-profile al-Qaeda supporters, in a clear effort to boost the group's profile.

HTS recently accused groups that had defected from it of withdrawing from the fight against the Syrian government. (See report). Efforts by Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim to promote their military involvement in the fighting may in part be aimed at disproving those allegations.

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Turkistan Islamic Party 

TIP logo

The Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) is a veteran al-Qaeda-aligned Uighur group which originated in the north-western Chinese province of Xinjiang but has an established presence in Syria.

The veteran group has been active in northern Syria since the early days of the Syrian conflict. It is generally respected by jihadist and rebel groups alike as it has fought alongside both - though more with jihadists - in various battles, and has sought to distance itself from the power struggles in Syria.

TIP has its own Telegram channel (t.me/sowtil5, 7730 members) and an established media presence spanning years, with regular publications and propaganda videos promoting its activities in Syria.

In the past, the group has commonly fought alongside HTS and its predecessor Nusra Front. 

On 10 January, TIP issued a statement announcing its involvement in the Idlib fighting under the jihadist-focused "God Can Defeat Them" military campaign. It subsequently reported capturing the villages of al-Mushayrifah and Arad al-Zarzour, which the above jihadist groups had also separately claimed seizing.

TIP militants

Prominent pro-al-Qaeda figures have praised TIP along with Jaysh al-Badiya and al-Malahim for allegedly "liberating" southern Idlib villages. 

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Islamic State group 

So-called Islamic State (IS) has surprisingly also been involved in the anti-government fighting in Idlib, an area where it is neither in control nor welcome, surrounded by enemies from all sides.

The key difference between IS and all other groups currently fighting against the Syrian army in Idlib is that IS is also a staunch enemy, rather than just a rival, of these groups.

As such, IS is not part of any of the alliances or operation rooms set up to drive the Syrian army out of Idlib and neighbouring areas in Hama province.

IS statement

IS's involvement in the anti-government Idlib battles is likely part of the group's ongoing efforts to claw itself a base in that area, where it has already made moves against HTS in recent days and months, capturing some of the latter's villages on the border between Hama and Idlib.

Jihadist and rebel groups expelled IS from Idlib years ago, although it has continued to occasionally operate there through cells.

Since 10 January, IS has been reporting attacks against government forces in southern Idlib, specifically near the strategic Abu al-Duhur (aka Abu al-Zuhour) air base. 

On 13 January, IS reported losses it had allegedly inflicted on Syrian troops east of the air base, releasing highly-graphic images of killed Syrian soldiers. 

On the subject of the fighting, the group published an editorial in its weekly magazine al-Naba on 12 January berating the "Sahawat" - a term referring to anti-jihadist Sunnis, but which IS uses to describe all Sunnis who do not submit to its authority. IS argued that the groups did not gain any legitimacy from their fight against the government, nor did it reverse their "apostasy". 

IS alone, it insisted, was the legitimate group worthy of following. This was because, it said, IS not only fought the Syrian government and other "tyrant" states, but its creed was "pure" and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was the only legitimate Muslim ruler. 

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Rebel groups

A string of rebel groups are also strongly involved in the Idlib fighting, mostly under the "Thwarting the Tyranny" military campaign. 

Some of the key rebel groups fighting in this camp are: the important Islamist faction Ahrar al-Sham, whose bases in Idlib HTS took over in July; Nour al-Din Zinki Movement; Jaysh al-Ahrar; Faylaq al-Sham; and Jaysh al-Izza (part of the Free Syrian Army, FSA). In addition, other smaller FSA factions are also involved.

Ahrar al-Sham

While these groups claimed making the same advances that the jihadist camp were claiming, neither camp acknowledged the other's involvement.

For example, on 12 January both HTS and Ahrar al-Sham claimed capturing the villages of al-Khuraibah and al-Rabi'ah. While Ahrar al-Sham said it had made the advance under the jihadist-focused "God Can Defeat Them" campaign, it said it had "liberated" the villages in collaboration with "The Popular Movement of Tribes". 

The Uighur jihadist group TIP has been listed by opposition media sources and by jihadist sources as fighting in both camps (rebel and jihadist).

This model of fighting together but apart has confirmed the ongoing fragmentation of the anti-government front in Syria, showing that it remains a fragile "alliance" of necessity and convenience rather than a solid partnership or a prelude to unity.

SOURCE: BBC MONITORING IN ARABIC 1559 GMT 13 JAN 18

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