Al Nusrah Front, foreign jihadists seize key Syrian base in Aleppo

The Al Nusrah Front for the People of the Levant, an al Qaeda-linked jihadist group that is fighting Bashir al Assad’s regime in Syria, and allied jihadist groups took control of the last major Syrian Army base in western Aleppo after a two-month-long siege. The base is believed to be involved in Syria’s chemical weapons program.

The Sheikh Suleiman base, or Base 111, fell to the Al Nusrah Front and “several Islamist rebel battalions linked to it,” a representative of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP. Foreign fighters are also said to have played a key role in the assault that led to the fall of the Sheikh Suleiman base, while nearby units of the Free Syrian Army stood by and watched.

“Many of the fighters were from other Arab countries and Central Asia,” AFP said, based on observations from one of its reporters who covered the area. An estimated 300 to 400 Syrian soldiers defended the base before it fell to the jihadist alliance. Al Qaeda’s black flag of jihad was raised over one of the buildings on the base as the fighting took place.

The two other Islamist groups who fought alongside Al Nusrah were identified as the Mujahedeen Shura Council and the Muhajireen group, according to The Associated Press. The term muhajireen means emigrants, a strong indication that many of its fighters are from outside of Syria.

Some of the fighters who took the base are non-Syrian. One of the leaders involved in the battle to take the base identified himself to AFP as Abu Talha and said he was from Uzbekistan. Other foreign fighters said, “We are all mujahedeens and muhajireens.”

Captured base said to be part of Syria’s chemical weapons program

The Sheikh Suleiman base is rumored to be involved in the Assad regime’s chemical weapons program. The base “contained a clandestine scientific research whose purpose was unknown even to the rank and file,” AFP reported in late November, based on a claim from a soldier who defected.

US officials have expressed concern that the Syrian government has been preparing to use chemical weapons against the rebels after suffering a string of defeats throughout the country. The US is also training Syrian rebels in Jordan to secure chemical weapons sites in the event that the Assad regime falls, CNN reported.

The Syrian government has warned that rebels may also use chemical weapons after the Al Nusrah Front took control control of a chlorine factory in Aleppo last week.

Islamists hold sway over new rebel military command

The fall of the Sheikh Suleiman base to jihadist forces took place just days after the supposedly secular rebels established a joint military command that is dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood and individuals linked to the various Salafist-jihadist groups.

“Its composition, estimated to be two-thirds from the Muslim Brotherhood and its allies, reflects the growing strength of Islamist fighters on the ground and resembles that of the civilian opposition leadership coalition created under Western and Arab auspices in Qatar last month, France 24 reported.

Senior military officers who defected from the Assad regime as well as military commanders opposed to the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafists were excluded from the joint command.

The Al Nusrah Front’s position on the newly established joint military command is unclear. In mid-November, the Al Nusrah Front and 13 other jihadist groups based in Aleppo rejected the Western-backed National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, and instead called for the establishment of an Islamic state.

“We declare our legitimate rejection of what came to be called the ‘national alliance.’ An agreement has been reached to establish a just Islamic State and to reject any foreign project, alliances or councils that are forced on us domestically from any entity, whatever it is,” according to a statement that was translated by the SITE Intelligence Group.

Al Nusrah becomes a dominant force in the Syrian insurgency

The Al Nusrah Front has by far taken the lead among the jihadist groups in executing suicide and other complex attacks against the Syrian military. The terror group has now claimed credit for 42 of the 51 suicide attacks that have taken place in Syria in the past 12 months. The group has also conducted numerous other attacks against the Syrian military and government.

The Syrian terror group is known to conduct joint operations with other Syrian jihadist organizations. In mid-November, Al Nusrah reported that it attacked a base in Idlib along with the Ahrar al Sham Brigades, and even shot down a Syrian MiG fighter aircraft.

The Al Nusrah Front is also known to conduct joint operations with the Free Syrian Army, which is often upheld as the secular resistance to Assad’s regime. On Oct. 11, Al Nusrah, the Free Syrian Army, and Chechen fighters overran a Syrian air defense and Scud missile base in Aleppo [see LWJ report, Al Nusrah Front commanded Free Syrian Army unit, ‘Chechen emigrants,’ in assault on Syrian air defense base]. In August, Al Nusrah said it attacked a police station outside of Damascus along with the Al Sahaba Battalion, a unit of the Free Syrian Army that operates in the capital [see Threat Matrix report, Al Nusrah Front conducts joint operation with Free Syrian Army].

Al Nusrah has become more appealing to Syrian rebels as the group’s fighters are better organized and have expertise from waging jihad in Iraq and elsewhere, and have integrated their operations with the Free Syrian Army.

Foreign jihadists have begun to pour into Syria to wage jihad against Assad’s regime. Fighters from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Jordan, and the Palestinian Territories are known to have been killed in Syria. Recently, two of Abu Musab al Zarqawi’s cousins were detained by Jordanian security forces after fighting in Syria.

Jihadists from the UK may be flocking to the Syrian battlefields as well. In mid-October, The Times reported that authorities had identified a Bangladeshi resident of London as the leader of a group of British jihadists seeking to fight in Syria. Scotland Yard seized computers and mobile phones from members of the group, which consists mainly of Londoners and includes seasoned Chechen fighters.

The US government is contemplating adding the Al Nusrah Front to the list of global terrorist groups, but some observers in Washington fear that designation would harm the overall insurgency.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

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8 Comments

  • mike merlo says:

    a definitely out of control situation

  • Tony says:

    Any idea if this may be related?
    Israel Deploys Commandos to Syria to Monitor WMD: Report
    http://www.nti.org/gsn/article/israel-deploys-special-operators-syria-monitor-chemical-arms-report/

  • David says:

    Tony,
    It has to be related. It only makes sense. The Western powers cannot act against the regime without provoking Russia to intercede. On the other hand, if chemical weapons fall into the hands of “non-state actors” (read, al qaeda et al) then the calculus becomes more complex. I am sure that the Russians are not exactly thrilled with the idea of Chechen rebels getting their hands on sarin and VX anymore than the US, Israel and the UK are.
    To quote one of the best movies of all time. “I say we take off and nuke the site from orbit. It is the only way to be sure.”

  • kush dragon says:

    Awesome, now we are supporting “rebels” who might get access to chemical weapons. I have no love for Assad, but does anyone really doubt this will come back to haunt us?

  • Paul T says:

    We have been arming & protecting Al-Queda branches since 1979.
    Now is the time to reflect & decide how that is working out.

  • mohammed says:

    No matter what the US and its allies try, the mujahideen world wide are on a roll. With just Afghanistan a decade ago, the Jihad has spread through out the world inspite of massive spending and military efforts. Not difficult to imagine how things will be in a decade of declining US influence and power.

  • mike merlo says:

    @Tony & David
    the Russians without a doubt are just as if not more concerned about bio-chem weapons finding their way into the hands of people who pose a threat to Russia. Even the TLWJ itself has commented on Chechens being present in Syria.
    I think the time for being concerned about a provoked Russia has since past.
    “I am sure that the Russians are not exactly thrilled with the idea of Chechen rebels getting their hands on sarin and VX anymore than the US, Israel and the UK are.” David
    I am sure the Turks & every other country in the ‘neighborhood’ have long since passed “thrilled” on the tingle barometer

  • Witch Doctor says:

    From Paul T:
    We have been arming & protecting Al-Queda branches since 1979.
    Now is the time to reflect & decide how that is working out.
    We all know the time for reflection has long passed. Now is the time to decide what we are going to do about it.
    As the terrorists grow in number and geographic location we will need to keep them from actually becoming one unified front.
    If anyone knows how to prevent that please chime in. I have my own ideas, but they are not nice ones.

Iraq

Islamic state

Syria

Aqap

Al shabaab

Boko Haram

Isis