Ahrar al-Sham

Harakat Ahrar ash-Sham al-Islamiyya ( Ahrār ash-Shām , meaning "Islamic Movement of the Free Men of the Levant ") is a coalition of multiple Islamist and Salafist units, which coalesced into a single brigade during the Syrian Civil War , in order to fight against the Ba'athist government lead by Bashar al-Assad . Ahrar ash-Sham was led by Hassan Aboud. As of July 2013, Ahrar ash-Sham had 10,000 to 20,000 fighters, making it the second single most powerful unit fighting against al-Assad, after the Free Syrian Army . It was the principal organization operating under the umbrella of the Syrian Islamic Front and is a major component of the Islamic Front . The Daily Star. 9 September 2014 . The Economist . 20 July 2013 . "The biggest rebel factions in Aleppo just formed coalition "Operation Conquest of Aleppo". The Goals and Guiding Principles of the Islamic Front and Its Allies" . Democratic Revolution, Syrian Style . 17 May 2014 . Long War Journal . 4 April 2014 . Long War Journal . 23 February 2014 . The truth about Syria's rebels" .

Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya ( ), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham , is a coalition of multiple Islamist and Salafist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bashar al-Assad during the Syrian Civil War . Ahrar al-Sham was led by Hassan Aboud until his death in 2014. In July 2013, Ahrar al-Sham had 10,000 to 20,000 fighters, which at the time made it the second most powerful unit fighting against al-Assad, after the Free Syrian Army . It was the principal organization operating under the umbrella of the Syrian Islamic Front and was a major component of the Islamic Front . With an estimated 20,000 fighters in 2015, Ahrar al-Sham became the largest rebel group in Syria after the Free Syrian Army became less powerful. Ahrar al-Sham and Jaysh al-Islam are the main rebel groups supported by Turkey . On 18 February 2018, Ahrar al-Sham merged with the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement to form the Syrian Liberation Front . The group aims to create an Islamic state under Sharia law . While both are major rebel groups, Ahrar al-Sham is not to be confused with Tahrir al-Sham , its main rival and former ally. Before 2016, Ahrar al-Sham cooperated with the al-Nusra Front , originally an affiliate of al-Qaeda . However, from 2017 onward it increasingly fought against al-Nusra , which rebranded as Tahrir al-Sham with a former Ahrar leader, Abu Jaber , as emir, and recruited some of Ahrar al-Sham's most hardline units. At the beginning of 2012 two prominent Salafi armed groups emerged: Jabhat al-Nusra (the Support Front) and Kata'ib Ahrar al-Sham (the Freemen of Syria Battalions) both of which embraced the language of jihad and called for an Islamic state based on Salafi principles (International Crisis Group, 2012). The Daily Star . 9 September 2014 . The Economist . 20 July 2013 . "Commander-in-Chief of Ahrar Al-Sham appoints his deputies and a new leader for the northern sector" . "List of armed formations, which joined the ceasefire in the Syrian Arab Republic on 30 December 2016" . Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation . " Last January, Idlib sank into a "rebel civil war" as fighting broke out between Jabhat al-Nusra and the Turkish-backed Ahrar al-Sham, a militia in the Syrian north that boasts of a powerbase of at least 20,000 fighters. " HTS and Ahrar al-Sham are the most militarily powerful, with the former likely commanding 12,000 to 14,000 fighters and the latter closer to 18,000 to 20,000." Aaron Y Zelin (June 2017). "Overnight [after its January 2017 expansion], Ahrar al-Sham had gained approximately 8,000 additional fighters to supplement its already large membership of 12,000." "The Syrian Islamic Front: A New Extremist Force" . The Dawn of Freedom Brigades: Analysis and Interview - Syria Comment" . Carnegie Endowment for International Peace . "Unified Military Command for Ghotta" (PNG) . The Daily Star Newspaper . The Goals and Guiding Principles of the Islamic Front and Its Allies" . Democratic Revolution, Syrian Style . 17 May 2014 . "Update: Rebel Infighting in East Ghouta" . : |first= has generic name ( help ) "NGO: Syria jihadists kill rebels in bombing" . Long War Journal . 23 February 2014 . Long War Journal . 4 April 2014 . The truth about Syria's rebels" . Institute for Study of War .

Islamic organization in Syria Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya ( ), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham , is a coalition of multiple Islamist and Salafist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bashar al-Assad during the Syrian Civil War . Ahrar al-Sham was led by Hassan Aboud until his death in 2014. In July 2013, Ahrar al-Sham had 10,000 to 20,000 fighters, which at the time made it the second most powerful unit fighting against al-Assad, after the Free Syrian Army . It was the principal organization operating under the umbrella of the Syrian Islamic Front and was a major component of the Islamic Front . With an estimated 20,000 fighters in 2015, Ahrar al-Sham became the largest rebel group in Syria after the Free Syrian Army became less powerful. Ahrar al-Sham and Jaysh al-Islam are the main rebel groups supported by Turkey . On 18 February 2018, Ahrar al-Sham merged with the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement to form the Syrian Liberation Front . The group aims to create an Islamic state under Sharia law . While both are major rebel groups, Ahrar al-Sham is not to be confused with Tahrir al-Sham , its main rival and former ally. Before 2016, Ahrar al-Sham allied with the al-Nusra Front , a now-defunct affiliate of al-Qaeda . From 2017 onward, it increasingly fought against Tahrir al-Sham , an Islamic coalition formed under the initiative of a former Ahrar leader, Abu Jaber Shaykh ; through a merger of Ahrar al-Sham's Jaysh al-Ahrar faction, Jabhat Fatah al-Sham , Nur al-Din Zenki and other militia groups. Current Trends in Islamist Ideology . At the beginning of 2012 two prominent Salafi armed groups emerged: Jabhat al-Nusra (the Support Front) and Kata'ib Ahrar al-Sham (the Freemen of Syria Battalions) both of which embraced the language of jihad and called for an Islamic state based on Salafi principles (International Crisis Group, 2012). The Economist . 20 July 2013 . "List of armed formations, which joined the ceasefire in the Syrian Arab Republic on 30 December 2016" . Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation . " Last January, Idlib sank into a "rebel civil war" as fighting broke out between Jabhat al-Nusra and the Turkish-backed Ahrar al-Sham, a militia in the Syrian north that boasts of a powerbase of at least 20,000 fighters. " HTS and Ahrar al-Sham are the most militarily powerful, with the former likely commanding 12,000 to 14,000 fighters and the latter closer to 18,000 to 20,000." Aaron Y Zelin (June 2017). "Overnight [after its January 2017 expansion], Ahrar al-Sham had gained approximately 8,000 additional fighters to supplement its already large membership of 12,000." Lund, Aron (5 October 2012). "Commander-in-Chief of Ahrar Al-Sham appoints his deputies and a new leader for the northern sector" . The Dawn of Freedom Brigades: Analysis and Interview - Syria Comment" . Carnegie Endowment for International Peace . "Unified Military Command for Ghotta" (PNG) . The Daily Star Newspaper . The Goals and Guiding Principles of the Islamic Front and Its Allies" . Democratic Revolution, Syrian Style . 17 May 2014 . Long War Journal . 23 February 2014 . Long War Journal . 4 April 2014 . The truth about Syria's rebels" . Institute for Study of War .