Liwa al-Islam

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Liwa al-Islam ( Arabic لواء الإسلام, DMG liwāʾ al-islām  'Brigade of Islam') is a Syrian rebel group fighting the Syrian government in the civil war in Syria . It is part of the Syrian Islamic Liberation Front , operates mainly in the city of Damascus and is the largest rebel group there.

Liwa al-Islam was founded in 2011 by Zahran Alloush and claimed to be responsible for conducting the July 18, 2012 bombings in Damascus that killed Defense Minister Daud Rajha . The group is a driving force behind attacks in Damascus and is known for conducting joint operations with the Nusra Front in Syria.

The rebel group had an estimated 9,000 fighters in 2013. It is partially considered to be Salafist and, according to experts, has been massively supported by Saudi Arabia since the second half of 2013 , which tries to differentiate its involvement in Syria from organizations close to al-Qaida.

43 opposition groups joined forces in the Syrian Civil War under the leadership of Liwa al-Islam on September 29, 2013 to form the Syrian Jaish al-Islam (English: Jaish al-Islam) (Army of Islam).

Air raid on December 25th

Zahran Alloush and five other leaders were killed in the Russian bombing on December 25, 2015 in a suburb of Damascus. The rebels said the airstrike was aimed at the secret headquarters of Jaish al-Islam. Syrian state television confirmed Alloush's death.

Web links

  • Liwa al-Islam in the database of the Terrorism Research & Analysis Consortium (TRAC)

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Largest Syrian rebel groups form Islamic alliance, in possible blow to US influence Washington Post ; September 25, 2013; Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  2. ↑ Liwa al-Islam pledges to support bomb attack in Damascus RIA Novosti July 18, 2012; Retrieved October 21, 2013
  3. ^ Syria crisis: Guide to armed and political opposition; Liwa al-Islam bbc.co.uk
  4. ↑ Khaled Yacoub Oweis: "Insight: Saudi Arabia boosts Salafist rivals to al Qaeda in Syria" Reuters October 1, 2013, viewed October 3, 2013
  5. ^ Mapping Militant Organizations - Jaish al-Islam. In: web.stanford.edu. November 5, 2014, accessed December 26, 2015 .
  6. ↑ Influential rebel chief in Syria killed in air strike. In: kurier.at. December 25, 2015, accessed December 28, 2017 .