The Syrian National Army (SNA; [30] Arabic : الجيش الوطني السوري, romanized: al-Jayš al-Waṭanī as-Sūrī), previously the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and also known as the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA), [31] [32] [33] is a coalition of armed Syrian opposition groups in the Syrian Civil War. Comprising various rebel factions that emerged at the onset of the war in July 2011, it was officially established in 2017 under the auspices of Turkey, which provides funding, training, and military support. [34]
The SNA has its roots in the FSA, a loose collection of armed opposition groups founded on 29 July 2011 by defected Syrian military officers. [35] After Turkey formally condemned the regime of Bashar al-Assad in November 2011, [36] it provided arms, training, and sanctuary to the FSA. [37] Initially the principal opponent of the Syrian government, [38] the FSA was gradually weakened by infighting, lack of funding, and rival Islamist groups. [39] In August 2016, Turkey began assembling a new coalition of Syrian rebel groups, which included many former FSA fighters, in an effort to create a more cohesive and effective opposition force; [34] following Operation Euphrates Shield, the Turkish government coordinated with the Syrian Interim Government to form a "National Army" to secure Turkish territorial gains. [40]
The official aims of the SNA are to create a "safe zone" in northern Syria, consolidate with other rebel factions, and combat both Syrian government forces and Islamists. [41] [42] Its presence expanded to the neighboring Idlib Governorate during the Syrian government's 2019 northwestern offensive, [28] [29] after which it incorporated the National Front for Liberation on 4 October 2019. [34]
Closely aligned with the Turkish government, [43] the SNA has been described as an auxiliary army of the Turkish Armed Forces [44] and as "mercenaries" by their critics. [45] [46] Outside Syria, SNA fighters have been deployed by Turkey as a proxy force [47] [48] in conflicts from Libya to the south Caucasus. [49] [50] The SNA mostly consists of Arabs and Syrian Turkmen. [51]
The SNA, which includes at least 25,000 fighters, with some sources estimating it to be 70,000, [52] mostly consists of Arabs and Turkmens. [53] The number of Syrian Kurds among the SNA is much smaller. In January 2018, senior SNA commander Azad Shabo said that there were "dozens" among the FSA units [54] such as the Azadî Battalion, [55] while Almodon Online reported about 500 Kurdish fighters overall, including in non-FSA formations such as Ahrar al-Sham, the Levant Front and the Army of Grandchildren. [56] By February 2018, a SNA commander said that 350 Kurds were part of the Syrian National Army. [57]
By the end of June 2017, most Turkish-backed FSA groups reorganized themselves into three military blocs: Victory, Sultan Murad and the Levant. A number of other groups remained independent. [58] On 30 December 2017, the groups unified to form the National Army. By this time, three "legions" were established as part of the SNA: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. On 15 March 2018, rebel factions in northern Homs Governorate formed the 4th Legion, though it later transferred to northern Aleppo. Factions also moved from Rif Dimashq Governorate and Damascus to northern Aleppo.
On 4 October 2019, the National Front for Liberation joined the National Army's command structure, planning to become its 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th legions. [59] Both NFL and SNA fighters were uninformed of the merger, which took place in a press conference in Urfa, southern Turkey, amid Turkish plans to launch an offensive against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). [60]
According to a 2019 research paper published by the pro-government Turkish think tank SETA, "Out of the 28 factions [in the Syrian National Army], 21 were previously supported by the United States, three of them via the Pentagon’s program to combat Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Eighteen of these factions were supplied by the CIA via the MOM Operations Room in Turkey, a joint intelligence operation room of the ‘Friends of Syria’ to support the armed opposition. Fourteen factions of the 28 were also recipients of the U.S.-supplied TOW anti-tank guided missiles." [61]
In April 2021, an additional military formation was made in Idlib, named 'al-Quwat al-Radifa' (Auxiliary Forces). [62]
By September 2021, groups under the Syrian National Army have coalesced into two main blocs: the Azm Operations Room and the Syrian Front for Liberation. [63] Speaking of these blocs, a freelance journalist based in the region said that "These formations are only for show and they are not united in reality. Each faction still has its own leaders and members who do not take orders from the leaders of other factions. These formations only aim to protect themselves. Whenever factions feel threatened, they form new military bodies to protect themselves, but once the threat is gone, the formations fall apart." [64]
The Free Syrian Army (FSA) was the Syrian rebel faction most aligned with the Turkish state since the beginning of the Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War. [116] For the FSA, Turkey was a sanctuary and a source of supplies. In the aftermath of the Kurdish-Turkish conflict restarting in 2015, the Turkish government became more influential throughout 2016, as other countries began to scale back their involvement and the rebel groups became more dependent on Turkish help. [117] The Turkey-backed FSA's wages are paid for by the Turkish government, they operate alongside the Turkish Armed Forces. [118] Injured Turkey-backed FSA troops have been treated in Turkey. [119]
The Free Police have more overt connections to Turkey, reportedly wearing Turkish police uniforms decorated with the word "Polis" (Turkish for "Police"), [120] while Special Forces wear distinctive light blue berets also worn by Turkish Gendarmerie. Some wore a Turkish flag patch on their uniforms at the inauguration ceremony on 24 January 2017. [121]
On 18 April 2018, the Raqqa Military Council, which consists of 6 groups, was announced in the city of Urfa in southeastern Turkey. [104]
The organization's first known engagement was a joint operation with the Turkish Armed Forces. In the first day, they took control of Jarabulus from ISIL. [122] After this, they expanded northeast, meeting with units of the Syrian Democratic Forces north of Manbij. They successfully pushed the SDF out of the Jarablus area and captured all its settlements; the Euphrates river was used as a demarcation line, with forces on the opposing sides. [123] [124] On at least one occasion, American troops came to form a joint operation with Turkey; however after the TFSA's Ahrar al-Sharqiya Brigade's verbal attacks ("crusaders", "pigs") against them, the US troops withdrew, being escorted from the area by US-backed units in the TFSA, including the Hamza Division and the al-Mu'tasim Brigade. [125] A U.S. defense official confirmed the event, but said that U.S. soldiers were still deployed in the area. [126] The joint forces pushed ISIL to the south. After this success, Turkey-backed FSA made contact near Mare with the SDF forces from the Afrin Canton. Contact between the two saw the group attack some SDF-held towns with Turkish artillery support. The attacks were repelled, with casualties on both sides. [127]
In February 2017, the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army and the Turkish Armed Forces advanced to besiege al-Bab. [128] [129] [130] By 27 February, the group and Turkish Armed Forces seized al-Bab. [131] [132] As of February 2017, 470 fighters of the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army died in Operation Euphrates Shield, while the Turkish armed forces lost 68. [71]
As of March 2017, the TFSA and the Turkish army were effectively blocked from moving further east by advances of the SAA. This occurred when the SDF's Manbij Military Council handed over some territory bordering the Turkish positions to the SAA, creating a buffer zone. [133] As a result, the TFSA failed to achieve other stated goals, including capturing the SDF-held city of Manbij and participating in the Coalition offensive on Raqqa. [134]
On 24 September 2017, the Hamza Division announced the opening of a military academy in the city of al-Bab. According to Abdullah Halawa, military commander of the group, 2,200 fighters will undergo two months of training in the academy, with the goal of forming a "Syrian National Army" in northern Syria. [135]
On 20 January 2018, Turkey launched a new operation in Afrin Region, against the Kurdish-led Democratic Union Party (PYD) in Syria. The SNA conducted ground offensives against the YPG and SDF supported by and in conjunction with Turkish armed forces (TAF/TSK) air strikes, artillery, armored units, and special forces units. [136] [137] The first phase of the operation is to capture the entire Afrin-Turkey border. [138] [ better source needed ] On 1 February, the SNA captured the strategic town of Bulbul after a fierce battle with the Kurdish-led People's Protection Units (YPG). [139] [ better source needed ] In early March, the second phase of Operation Olive Branch was launched after successfully clearing the entire Afrin-Turkey border. [140] On 3 March, after fierce fighting, the SNA captured the town of Rajo. [141] On 8 March, the SNA captured Jinderes, meaning that they now have control over all major roads leading to the city of Afrin. [142] On 13 March, SNA forces reached Afrin city and encircled it. [143] [144] On 18 March, the SNA took full control of Afrin, marking their second big victory after Operation Euphrates Shield. [145] Since the capture of Afrin city, SNA forces have been busy clearing the recently captured areas of mines and providing security and stability to the region. [146] As of 13 June SNA forces have dismantled 240 mines and 1,231 IEDs. [147]
By 16 August, the SNA sent considerable reinforcements to the frontlines of Hama and Idlib, where the Syrian Arab Army was launching an offensive against HTS and various rebel groups. [148] Following this, rebel forces launched another heavy attack on the government-held village of Sukayk.
On 9 October 2019, Turkish Armed Forces, together with the Syrian National Army, had launched what they called Operation Peace Spring against SDF to eradicate what Turkish President Erdogan called "the threat of terror" against Turkey. [149] On 13 October, Peace Spring forces captured the border town of tal Abyad. [150] After the conclusion of the Second Battle of Ras al-Ayn on 20 October, SDF fighters retreated from the border town of Ras al Ain during the cease fire, which was brokered by the United States and Turkey. [151] On 25 November, the operation was completed, after securing the territories between Ras al Ayn and Tal Abyad. [152]
On 2 December, Lebanon's al-Akhbar newspaper reported that the SDF managed to ambush Turkish-backed forces, killing 30 fighters. [153]
Since 2020, Turkey has been hiring and transporting fighters from the Syrian National Army to support and bolster the manpower of the Libyan GNA. [154] Several SNA member groups volunteered for the operation despite strong objections of the Syrian Interim Government. [6] Up to 481 have died in combat. [155]
In September 2020, Turkey deployed 2,580 fighters from the Syrian National Army to fight in Nagorno-Karabakh, [7] where according to SOHR, up to 541 have died in combat. [156]
In January 2024, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that Turkey had deployed SNA fighters to participate in the anti-ISIS campaign in Niger. [157] By May 2024, an additional 250 members of the SNA's Sultan Murad Division had been dispatched to Niger by Turkey's National Intelligence Organization. [158] [16] [17]
In July 2024, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that Turkey had deployed SNA fighters to participate in the Turkish-PKK conflict in Northern Iraq. According to SOHR sources, the number of Syrian fighters expected to join this mission is estimated to be nearly 400 mercenaries from "Al-Sulta Suleiman Shah," "Al-Hamzah" Divisions and "Al-Sultan Murad" Division. [159] According to the sources, some SNA fighters have been captured by the "Kurdistan Workers’ Party." [159]
This section needs to be updated.(July 2018) |
On 26 March 2016, Ahrar ash-Sham ordered the anti-YPG Kurdish FSA group Liwa Ahfad Saladin to remove the flag of Kurdistan from their posts and threatened military action if they did not. [160] However, Liwa Ahfad Saladin's commander denied the incident ever occurred and stated Ahrar ash-Sham to be its ally. [161]
On 27 September 2016, several Ahrar al-Sham fighters publicly burned a FSA flag in Azaz. The Ahrar al-Sham spokesman denied involvement and the incident sparked pro-FSA demonstrations in the city. [162]
On 14 November 2016, the Levant Front and the Sultan Murad Division clashed at the Azaz border gate with Kilis, Turkey. [163] Ahrar al-Sham and the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement, a former member of the Levant Front, joined the fighting after they said the Levant Front leaders was "acting like gangs". [164]
On 3 April 2017, Ahrar al-Sham reportedly attacked Liwa Ahfad Saladin in Qabasin and captured more than 8 of their fighters, including a commander. Hours later, the prisoners were released after negotiations, although tensions between the two groups remain. [165]
On 13 April 2017, clashes broke out between the Levant Front and the Sultan Suleyman Shah Brigade 100 kilometers north of Aleppo after both groups said the other was committing corruption. The Sultan Murad Division, the Hamza Division, and the Northern Hawks Brigade sided with the Sultan Suleyman Shah Brigade during the clashes. [166]
On 14 May 2017, two separate clashes in Jarabulus and Gandura pitted the Ahrar al-Sharqiya Brigade against the Sultan Murad Division and the Sham Legion. The fighting stopped after the intervention of the Turkish Army. [167]
On 22 May, the Levant Front attacked the Sham Legion near Azaz. The Levant Front said the Sham Legion was conspiring with the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement, part of Tahrir al-Sham. The LF besieged the Sham Legion headquarters, captured a number of their fighters, and seized several ammunition dumps. [168]
Between 24 and 25 May, 5 FSA factions including the Levant Front, the Hamza Division, and the Sultan Murad Division conducted a joint attack on the Revolutionary Knights Brigade between Azaz and al-Rai and captured more than 20 of their fighters, in addition to killing and wounding at least 10. The FSA factions said the Revolutionary Knights Brigade was affiliated to the Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement and Tahrir al-Sham and partaking in smuggling, looting, extortion, and abuses of civilians. [169]
Between 4 and 15 June, heavy fighting broke out between TFSA factions led by the Sultan Murad Division and Ahrar al-Sham and its allies in and near al-Bab. By 15 June, 33 people were killed and 55 injured in the infighting. On 8 June, between 60 and 70 TFSA fighters, including several Sultan Murad Division commanders, defected to the Syrian Army and the Syrian Democratic Forces during the clashes. [170]
On 3 July 2017, Mahmoud Khallo, commander of the Descendants of Saladin Brigade, declared that his unit would not participate in a planned Turkish-led offensive against the YPG and SDF in the Afrin District and the Shahba region. [171] Following the announcement, the group was attacked by multiple Turkish-backed groups, which captured the group's positions and warehouses with vehicles and equipment. On 14 July, Khallo himself was captured by the Levant Front, which said he was affiliated with both al-Qaeda and the Democratic Union Party (PYD), and was tortured. The Levant Front then handed him over to Turkish security forces, who interrogated him. [172] After being released soon after, Khallo protested against his unit's treatment and criticized that "Turkey was apparently only interested in using the Syrian militias to further its own strategic goals". He also said that Liwa Ahfad Saladin, now without weapons, would set up a political party. [96]
On 25 March 2018, following the capture of Afrin a week earlier, clashes broke out between the Hamza Division and Ahrar al-Sharqiya in the city, resulting in the latter group capturing around 200 fighters from the former. A ceasefire agreement between the two groups was signed on the same day under the auspices of Turkey. [173]
On 18 November 2018, at least 25 militants were killed and dozens wounded in heavy clashes between Turkish-backed insurgent factions in the northwestern Syrian city of Afrin. The clashes primarily occurred in the Mahmudiya and Villat neighborhoods, killing 14 fighters from Ahrar al-Sharqiya and nine from the other groups. [174]
In September 2016, after their capture of Jarabulus from ISIL, Sultan Murad Division fighters published pictures of themselves torturing four YPG prisoners of war. [175] [176]
In June 2017, the Kurdish National Council said the rebels kidnapped 55 Kurdish civilians and displaced hundreds of Yazidis in northern Aleppo. [177]
Several cases of Human rights violations have been reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human rights (SOHR). [178] According to Kurdish sources, Kurdish local politician Hevrin Khalaf was executed near Qamishli by the Syrian National Army, her death was later confirmed by the SOHR. [179] SOHR further reported that at least 9 civilians had been executed by the rebel troops. [180]
On 3 October 2018, the Glory Corps attempted to seize 4 houses inhabited by displaced families from Arbin in Afrin city to use as headquarters, but were stopped by the Sultan Murad Division and the rebel military police. [181]
On 27 January 2019, Glory Corps and Sham Legion fighters kidnapped a doctor from his clinic in Afrin and tortured him, and said he was a member of the Democratic Union Party (PYD); the Sham Legion denied its fighters were involved. [182]
After the SNA captured the border town of Tell Abyad and its surroundings during the offensive in northern and eastern Syria in October 2019, Glory Corps fighters reportedly kidnapped several young men from Bîr Atwan village, west of Tell Abyad, and beat and humiliated them. [183] On 22 October, fighters from the group trampled and mutilated the body of what appeared to be a Women's Protection Units (YPJ) fighter they killed in the countryside near Kobanî, laughing while they did so. [184] The SNA captured four unarmed people and promptly executed them on a road. [185]
On 15 September 2020, a report by the investigators of the UN's International Independent Commission on Syria denounced the atrocities committed against Kurdish populations by Syrian National Army forces: torture, rape, murder, systematic looting, rackets, forced displacement, forced appropriation of civilian property, arbitrary detentions and kidnappings. [186] [187]
The 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report mentioned that factions of the Syrian National Army recruited and used Syrian children as child soldiers in Libya. [188]
The inter-rebel conflict during the Syrian Civil War has continued throughout the Syrian Civil War as factions of the Syrian opposition and Free Syrian Army have fought each other, with shifting alliances among various Islamist factions such as Jabhat al Nusra, Ahrar al-Sham, Jaysh al-Islam and the Islamic Front.
The Sham Legion is an alliance of Sunni Islamist rebel groups formed in March 2014, during the Syrian Civil War. The alliance was formed from 19 different groups, some of which were previously affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood of Syria and the Shields of the Revolution Council.
The Free Men of Syria Brigade or the Free Syrian Brigade is a group of Syrian rebel fighters affiliated with the Free Syrian Army active during the Syrian civil war, mainly around Aleppo.
The Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement was a Sunni Islamist rebel group involved in the Syrian Civil War. In 2014, it was reportedly one of the most influential factions in Aleppo, especially the Western Aleppo countryside. Between 2014 and 2015, it was part of the Syrian Revolutionary Command Council and recipient of U.S.-made BGM-71 TOW anti-tank missiles. The Movement made multiple attempts to merge with the larger Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham but were refused by Ahrar al-Sham's leadership. The Zenki Movement also made attempts to merge with other Islamist factions, Jaysh al-Islam and the Sham Legion. However, all merging efforts with these groups failed, leading to the Zenki Movement joining the Salafi Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in 2017. But after a few months the group left HTS and within a year went to war with HTS by joining the Turkish-backed Syrian Liberation Front alongside Ahrar al-Sham on 18 February 2018. After a series of clashes in early 2019 Al Zenki were largely defeated by HTS, expelled to Afrin and absorbed in the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army.
The Levant Front is a Syrian rebel group based around Aleppo involved in the Syrian Civil War. It was formed in December 2014.
The Fastaqim Kama Umirt Union is a rebel group active during the Syrian Civil War.
The Army of Revolutionaries, also known as Jaysh al-Thuwar, is a multi-ethnic armed Syrian rebel coalition that is allied with the primarily Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and participating in the Syrian Civil War as part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Relations between the People's Protection Units (YPG) and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) are unclear and varied among the different FSA factions. Both are opposed to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. However, several clashes between the two have taken place. Under pressure from the United States, some FSA groups coordinate with the YPG to battle ISIL under the name of the Syrian Democratic Forces, although some other FSA groups remained in conflict with the YPG and the SDF, including FSA groups in the SDF.
The Descendants of Saladin Brigade was a Free Syrian Army group active in the northern Aleppo Governorate. The group was supported by Turkey and was initially funded and armed by the United States, mainly fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant but also opposing the Syrian government and the Democratic Union Party's (PYD) affiliates such as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The brigade was largely disbanded by the Turkish Army in 2017, following disagreements over the participation in a planned Turkish-led offensive against Afrin Canton, although a small faction within the group remained active and participated in the offensive since January 2018.
The Sultan Murad Division is an armed rebel group in the Syrian Civil War, created around a Syrian Turkmen identity. It is aligned with the Syrian opposition and are heavily supported by Turkey, who provides funding and military training along with artillery and aerial support. It is the most notable group among Syrian Turkmen Brigades supported by Turkey.
The al-Hamza Division is a Syrian rebel group in northwestern Syria affiliated with the Syrian National Army, trained and equipped by the United States, the United Kingdom and Turkey as part of the Syrian Train and Equip Program. Formed in 2013, it cooperates with the Turkish Armed Forces in the Turkish occupation of northern Syria.
The western al-Bab offensive was a multi-sided military confrontation between the Syrian Army, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), other (Turkey-backed) FSA factions, and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the countryside of northwestern Aleppo Governorate, south of the towns of Mare' and Tel Rifaat.
The Hawar Kilis Operations Room is a Syrian rebel coalition formed in the village of Hawar Kilis in April 2016 in the northern Aleppo Governorate on the Syria–Turkey border.
The Northern Democratic Brigade is a Free Syrian Army unit that is closely allied to the Syrian Kurdish YPG and YPJ in Afrin Region since 2014. Led by Absi Taha, Alexander Khalil, and Alexander Alaa, it also joined the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in November 2015. The initial members of the group originated from Jabal Zawiya in Idlib, and it has recruited Arabs from Idlib, Aleppo, and other cities in northern Syria since allying with the YPG. Since joining the SDF, the unit has begun to operate across much of northern and eastern Syria, participating in operations against anti-SDF Syrian opposition factions, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, the Turkish Armed Forces, and the Syrian National Army.
The National Front for Liberation is a Syrian rebel coalition that is part of the Syrian National Army (SNA) fighting in the Syrian Civil War. The group was formed by 11 rebel factions in northwestern Syria in May 2018, and was officially announced on 28 May 2018. The formation receives major support from Turkey. The group joined the SNA on 4 October 2019.
Tajammu Ahrar al-Sharqiya, commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sharqiya, is an active armed Syrian rebel group founded in 2016 by individuals exiled and displaced mostly from the Deir ez-Zor Governorate and other eastern provinces, such as the Hasakah Governorate, by ISIL, YPG and the Syrian government due to fighting that took place there between 2011 and 2014. Many fighters in Ahrar al-Sharqiya are former al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham members.
The Conquest Brigade, also known as Battalion of Conquest or al-Fatah Brigade, is a Sunni Islamist Free Syrian Army group that takes part in the Syrian Civil War. One of the largest rebel factions active in Aleppo Governorate during the early civil war, the militia played a major part in the fighting for Aleppo city and other battles. As result of conflicts with government forces and later the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant it declined after 2013.The Conquest Brigade became part of the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA) in 2016, also engaging in fighting with the Syrian Democratic Forces.
The SDF insurgency in northern Syria is a campaign of armed attacks carried out by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), following the expansion of the Turkish occupation of northern Syria after the early 2018 Operation Olive Branch carried out by the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (TFSA).
The Glory Corps is a Turkish-backed rebel group that operates under the Syrian National Army's 3rd Legion during the Syrian Civil War. Formed in 2017, the group works closely with the Levant Front, the main faction in the 3rd Legion, and included fighters that defected from the Sham Legion. The Glory Corps fought against Syrian government forces, and participated in the Turkish-led Operation Olive Branch against the People's Protection Units (YPG)-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the Afrin Region in 2018. It was targeted by a YPG insurgency in the aftermath of the offensive, when it became based in Afrin.
Clashes took place between Ahrar al-Sham and the Levant Front, two factions of the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, across the Turkish-occupied areas of the Aleppo Governorate in June 2022, as part of the on-going civil war in Syria. Ahrar al-Sham was supported by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) from the latter's territories in the Idlib Governorate, while the Sham Legion and Jaysh al-Islam backed the Levant Front.
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