Gap Widening among Syrian Armed Groups

The gaps and divisions among terrorist groups in Syria seem to have brought them into confrontation as a group of armed terrorists affiliated with the so-called Free Syrian Army killed an Al Qaeda leader in Northern Syria.

Speaking to Al-Quds Al-Arabi, Yasser al-Sarri, the head of Islamic Media Watch, a London-based Syrian opposition center, said that over 15 members of Farouq Battellion killed Abu Mohammad al-Shami al-Absi near Syria’s border with Turkey.

Farouq Battalion is an armed group affiliated with the so-called Free Syrian Army and the so-called Syrian National Council, the Turkey-based main opposition group.

The report quoted informed source as saying that the move resulted in heavy clashes between the Syrian rebels and Al Qaeda members.

The incident once again displays wide gap among Syrian opposition groups.

Despite repeated attempts by the US and its regional Arab allies, the opposition and the rebel and terrorist groups have failed to agree on a common approach to end President Bashar al-Assad’s rule.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011 with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.

In October, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country, but Israel, the US and its Arab allies are seeking hard to bring the country into chaos through any possible means. Tel Aviv, Washington and some Arab capitals have been staging various plots in the hope of stirring unrests in Syria once again.

The US and its western and regional allies have long sought to topple Bashar al-Assad and his ruling system. Media reports said that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.

The US daily, Washington Post, reported in May that the Syrian rebels and terrorist groups battling the President Bashar al-Assad’s government have received significantly more and better weapons in recent weeks, a crime paid for by the Persian Gulf Arab states and coordinated by the United States.

The newspaper, quoting opposition activists and US and foreign officials, reported that Obama administration officials emphasized the administration has expanded contacts with opposition military forces to provide the Persian Gulf nations with assessments of rebel credibility and command-and-control infrastructure.

Opposition activists who several months ago said the rebels were running out of ammunition said in May that the flow of weapons – most bought on the black market in neighboring countries or from elements of the Syrian military in the past – has significantly increased after a decision by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Persian Gulf states to provide millions of dollars in funding each month.