Alnusra front is alqaedas formal affiliate in syria and one of the most powerful rebel groups fighting assad. The base to global database a history of strategic virtualisation73. Seeking to broaden its appeal among other armed syrian opposition groups, jn formally broke ties with alqaeda core in july 2016, renaming itself jabhat fateh alsham. In syria, car bomb kills scores in area recaptured from islamic state instead it is the extremists who have closed ranks and turned against the u. The war between isis and al qaeda for supremacy of the global jihadist movement aaron y.
The revelations, which emerged from a statement by a senior syrian jihadist, a public chastisement from ayman zawahiri, and then and a backandforth involving various jihadists in syria, suggests that alqaeda wields less influence than previously feared and that u. Syrian islamic council, and, to some extent, in the nusra front, the alqaeda. According to al akhbar s analysis, the syria files illuminateoften in small waysthe nature of power within and the inner workings of certain political and economic elements in syria. Al qaeda defector al fadl, who was a former member of qatar charity, testified in court that abdullah mohammed yusef, who served as qatar charitys director, was affiliated to al qaeda and simultaneously to the national islamic front, a political group that gave al qaeda leader osama bin laden harbor in sudan in the early 1990s. The combating al qaeda in syria strategy group was formed in july 2016 by nicholas a. Inside the jihadi mind understanding ideology and propaganda emma elbadawy milo comerford peter welby. Jul 25, 2012 and, in spite of the similar language and attire seen and heard in their videos, none of the sunni militant groups fighting assad in syria is known to have claimed a link to al qaeda. Al qaedas leading thinkers are steeped in these reformerslong struggle against the establishment.
Jabhat alnusra, and alqaeda in the arabian peninusla, as revealed in their propaganda, in order. The territory in the middle east that al qaeda covets most is of course saudi arabia, but syria is next on the list. Most analysts continue to view jfs as a covert alqaeda affiliate, although key proalqaeda ideologues are unhappy with what they see as. How assad staged al qaeda bombings the daily beast. Al masri, zarqawi s successor, announces the establishment of the islamic state in iraq isi, with abu omar albaghdadi as its leader. Jabhat alnusras embrace of this new model of jihad brought it. Now, syria is not syria to jihadis, but part of bilaad al shaam, what the. Joulani and his companions recruited heavily from the syrian countryside after. The islamic state of iraq and the sham isis can acun the presence of isis has captivated the whole world. In a recorded audio message lasting 20 minutes and released yesterday to jihadi websites, albaghdadi acknowledged that al qaeda has been involved in the fighting in syria, confirming that the. In contrast, alqaeda groups have focused more on local populations and local flashpoints. Alqaeda, the islamic state and the evolution of an insurgency. Over the past six months, the tahrir institute for middle east policy has sponsored this integral working group of young syria, middle east, and u. Qaeda proxies in syria dr christina lin february 2016 abstract there is growing opposition by the american public to current us policy of supporting al qaeda affiliates in syria to overthrow the assad regime.
It is therefore likely a strategic consideration for both joulani and zawahiri to ensure this network adheres to alqaeda as it evolves. United states on syria restarted and intensified, as marked particularly by the announcement of the partial ceasefire excluding daesh and al qaeda affiliate jabhat al nusra that the united states and russia brokered and which is scheduled to begin at the end of february. Inside the jihadi mind understanding ideology and propaganda. The al qaeda reader should be required reading for any student of political science who wants to understand terrorism. Aqap has carried out violent jihadist attacks both domestically and internationally in service of alqaedas ideology. According to thenunited nations high commissioner for human rights navi pillay, as of.
Thanks to documents captured from abbottabad, it is now also known that bin laden himself. Apr 29, 2015 although the syria conflict revived the iraqi jihadist movement, it also eventually led it to split with the al qaeda leadership. Backgrounder the threat of new alqaeda leadership the case of syrias aljoulani une 30 2015 of a caliphate on june 29, 2014. Now, for the first time, the al qaeda reader gathers together the essential texts and documents that trace the origin, history, and evolution of the ideas of alqaeda founders ayman alzawahiri and osama bin laden. There is a general assumption that the syrian alqaeda affiliate jabhat alnusra is weakening in the face of the regime of bashar alassads recent militarily achievements and international led airstrikes against the group. Heras, the bacevich fellow at the center for a new american security. Joulani was subsequently dispatched to syria to establish a new alqaeda affiliate as an offshoot of aqi during ramadan in 2011, as the syrian revolution was becoming violent. Aqap and aqim eulogize zawahiri deputy abu alkhayr almasri, site intelligence group, march 2, 2017. The al qaeda network today also comprises semiautonomous or self radicalized actors, who often have only peripheral or ephemeral ties to either the core cadre in pakistan or affiliated groups elsewhere.
Al qaeda, its affiliated groups, associated groups, and adherents. There is a second alqaeda splinter group operating in this terrain known as the guardians of religion, which i mention because the proliferation of jihadist groups inside of syria is going to ensure that this conflict does not stabilize even if that insurgency brewing in the southwest does, in fact. Aug 23, 2016 after jabhat fath alsham split from al qaeda, the groups director of foreign media relations talked to the intercept about whats next in the war in syria. Developments on the overlapping battlefields of the counterisis and antiassad campaigns in syria have. Isis takes over mosul, launching its largest offensive to date. The nusra front in syria has been the most successful test of this al qaeda.
In 2019, turkey launched a cross border military operation attempting to expel syrian kurdish u. The organization is now being scrutinized for the scenes of violence reminiscencing of. Naser, a former high intelligence official in ras al ein, northern syria, said shawkat and his colleagues urged assad to go to daraa, the scene of the. The third strategic objective that elevating joulani to. Government efforts against al qaeda, cna drm2017u015710final, august 2017. The jihadi threat united states institute of peace. Early tuesday morning, sheikh abu bakr alhusseini alqurashi albaghdadi the leader of the islamic state of iraq, an alqaeda branch released an audio message announcing the extension of its islamic state into alsham the levant, effectively bringing syrian jihadist rebel group jabhat al. One of al qaedas most important talking points is the legacy of the sykespicot agreement between the british and the french in 1916 that created this border between what we today call syria. Front of the supporters, known as jabhat fatah alsham arabic. Antiassad forces temporarily retake key city with turkish support, turkey downs regime planes over greater idlib.
Finally, the us has been unable to prevent allied nations from supporting groups affiliated with alqaeda. Finally, and arguably most importantly, was the challenge alqaeda faced from isis and its dramatic gains in iraq and proclamation of a caliphate in mid2014. Isis takes over raqqa and declares it the capital of the isis emirate. Syrian jihadist group jabhat alnusra has announced it is severing ties with al qaeda and changing its name to jabhat fateh alsham, according to a video. Katherine zimmerman is a research fellow at the american enterprise institute aei and the lead analyst on al qaeda for aeis critical threats project. The extremist group islamic state, also known as isis, and alqaedas affiliate in syria, jabhat alnusra, were responsible for systematic and widespread violations including targeting civilians, kidnappings, and executions. In contrast, al qaeda groups have focused more on local populations and local flashpoints.
The islamic state also known as isis, and the former alqaeda affiliate in syria, jabhat alnusra, which changed its name to jabhat fath alsham, were responsible for systematic. Al akhbar listed the main topics of the alassads syria files emails, and stated, viewed through the prism of the syria files, syrias first couple appear to be occupied with their representative capacities, with ample time devoted to the state of the palatial gardens, renovations, the stationary needs of lowlevel employees, but also. Secret files reveal the structure of islamic state, spiegel online. In the counterisis fight, the new administration seems willing. It does base a lot of its information on the son of an al qaeda leader who defected to help the cia, and that reliance on one source made me wonder if he was totally reliable. The conflict also fueled the rise of isis, prompting an. Harleen gambhir is a counterterrorism analyst at the institute for the study of war and the author of isiss global strategy. Zelin is the richard borow fellow at the washington institute for near east policy and the rena and sami david fellow at the international centre for the study of radicalisation and political violence. Feb 04, 2014 istanbul al qaedas central leadership has officially cut ties with a powerful jihadist group that has flourished in the chaos of the civil war in syria and that rushed to build an islamic.
Al akhbar states its confidence that the emails are authentic, that the senders and receivers are mainly who they say they are. Articles alqaidas complex balancing act in syria universiteit. Jabhat alnusra jn, alqaeda s aq affiliate in syria, has also developed into a serious and expanding threat both to the west and to the future of syria. Alqaeda in the arabian peninsula aqap is the union of alqaedas branches in saudi arabia and yemen.
How alqaeda survived drones, uprisings,and the islamic state. While american forces have occasionally targeted al qaeda cells in syria that are looking. Iraq aqi, alqaeda in the arabian peninsula aqap, alshebab, alqaeda in the indian subcontinent aqis, alqaeda syria aqs, and the abu sayyaf group asg. Though direct support has been limited, allies like qatar have found alternative means. Since the discussions have supposedly been between representatives of caliph albaghdadi of isis and al qaeda central aqc head ayman alzawahiri, in the interest of caution we should assume that the discussions are not just about a reconciliation in syria and iraq.
The move came three years after a large number of its fighters broke off from its ranks to join what came to be known as the islamic state of iraq and the levant isil, which also rejected al. Response congressional research service 2 emerged as a persistent challenge for u. Al qaeda, isis, and operation cycleone internet archive. Russias policy on syria after the start of military engagement. Recently, isis has become the center of attention with its latest activities and confrontation with the antiassad forces in syria. The violence being waged in syria by president bashar alassad against his own people has resulted in an increased presence by al qaeda in syria.
The rise and fall of isis hague centre for strategic studies. Americas isis war is helping al qaeda the daily beast. At the same time, an alqaeda affiliate, hayat tahrir alsham hts, significantly bolstered its presence in the countrys north. In 2009 the formation of aqap alqaeda in the arabian peninsula was announced, as a merger of the saudi and the yemeni branches of alqaeda. Now, syria is not syria to jihadis, but part of bilaad alshaam, what the. The is which was initially fighting the near enemy. In july 2016, jabhat alnusra announced its split from alqaeda in syria and changed its name to fateh alsham. From its beginnings as a shadowy insurgent group to its evolution as a powerful military force in the civil war, the groups syrian outfit has slowly but surely increased its influence in the country. The teaching of the reformers has been heterodox and revolutionary from the beginning. For simplicity, isis islamic state in syria and iraq is used instead of daesh, islamic state, is, or isil. Due to the collective actions of the bashar alassad regime, inter nationallyrecognized opposition groups, and extremist and u. Alqaedas 911 attacks was the deadliest ever on american soil, killing nearly 3,000 people. Despite russia and the syrianregime saying theyre fighting alqaeda in syria, the groups presence has been shrinking. Pdf the transformation of terrorism from alqaeda to the islamic state is has.
Antiassad forces, including the turkishbacked national liberation front nlf. Despite russia and the syrianregime saying theyre fighting al qaeda in syria, the groups presence has been shrinking. How us allies aid al qaeda in syria consortiumnews. Two alqaeda affiliates, alqaeda in the arabian peninsula aqap, and alqaeda in the islamic maghreb aqim, quickly issued a joint statement eulogizing almasri. Alqaeda defector alfadl, who was a former member of qatar charity, testified in court that abdullah mohammed yusef, who served as qatar charitys director, was affiliated to alqaeda and simultaneously to the national islamic front, a political group that gave alqaeda leader osama bin laden harbor in sudan in the early 1990s. The increase in the number of antinusra demonstrations this year, especially in idlib. Since the fall of the taliban, alqaeda has established operations worldwide, including in syria, the gulf, north africa, west africa, east africa, and the indian subcontinent. Some reports indicate or claim that isis and al qaeda are discussing a merger. With president donald trump threatening to pull out of syria, the bashar alassad regime ramping up its military campaign against rebels, and the islamic state in decline, al qaeda has attempted to resurge and reposition itself at the center of global salafijihadist activity. The islamic state also known as isis, and the former al qaeda affiliate in syria, jabhat al nusra, which changed its name to jabhat fath al sham, were responsible for systematic. Spellings of groups such as alqaeda are anglicised and consistent throughout the paper, as are any names cited. While american forces have occasionally targeted al qaeda cells in syria that are looking to attack the west, the u. Khayr almasri, a veteran egyptian jihadist close to zawahri.
Militant leader talks about break with al qaeda and possible. The territory in the middle east that alqaeda covets most is of course saudi arabia, but syria is next on the list. On december 12, daniel byman delivered testimony on the resurgence of al qaeda in iraq before the joint hearing of the terrorism, nonproliferation, and trade subcommittee and the. The group conducts formal military campaigns, assassinations, hostage missions, and lone wolf operations, including alqaedas trademark suicide bombings. Kathleen hammerberg, alexander powell, zack gold, david knoll, and william rosenau, independent assessment of u. Zawahiri encouraged the iraqi affiliate to move into syria, but he. In their own words, al qaeda tells the western world why they are attacking western interests and what they want. And, in spite of the similar language and attire seen and heard in their videos, none of the sunni militant groups fighting assad in syria is known to have claimed a link to al qaeda. The leader of alnusra front the al qaedaaffiliate group in syria insisted on wednesday that he is under orders from the organizations central leadership not to attack western interests.
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