The Jaysh al-Nukhba (''Elite Army'' ( ar, ), formerly called the ''Liberation Army'' ( ar, : Jaysh al-Tahrir) is a group operating in the Hama and

Aleppo Governorate Aleppo Governorate ( ar, محافظة حلب / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ḥalab'' / ) is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,867,000 (2011 Est.), almost 23% of t ...

s, backed and supported by Turkey. The group was formed from five units, some of which received

BGM-71 TOW The BGM-71 TOW ("Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided") is an American anti-tank missile. TOW replaced much smaller missiles like the SS.10 and ENTAC, offering roughly twice the effective range, a more powerful warhead, and a greatly ...

missiles from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

History

Liberation Army

In July 2016 the al-Nusra Front raided the Liberation Army's headquarters in

Kafr Nabl Kafr Nabl ( ar, كَفْرنَبِل, Kafr Nabil, also spelled Kafranbel or Kafr Nabil) is a town administratively belonging to the Idlib Governorate and Ma'arrat al-Numan District in northwestern Syria. It is situated above sea level. In the 20 ...

and captured 40 fighters, including the group's commander, Mohammed al-Ghabi. They also seized a number of weapons. The group participated in the Turkish military intervention in Syria which began with the capture of

Jarabulus Jarabulus ( ar, جَرَابُلُس / ALA-LC: ''Jarābulus'', Aleppo dialect: ''Jrāblos''; tr, Cerablus) is a Syrian city administratively belonging to Aleppo Governorate, under the de-facto control of the Syrian Opposition. Jarabulus lies on ...

. Liberation Army fighters captured the village of Amarnah from the Syrian Democratic Forces and took more than 8 SDF fighters captive. Since October 2016, the Liberation Army operates a

prisoner-of-war camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, internment camps, and military prisons. ...

in the northern

, which holds around 300 prisoners of war from the

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

, implementing Sharia and

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

. On 15 October, Mohammed al-Ghabi was severely injured by an ISIL car bombs and died 20 days later. A new commander was named on 10 November.

Elite Army

On 7 January 2017, the Liberation Army announced that it has changed its name to the Elite Army and a new commander was appointed. After internal disputes within the group in early 2017, the 46th, 312th, and 314th Divisions left the Elite Army and formed a new group called the 2nd Army. In May 2018, along with 10 other rebel groups in northwestern Syria, the Elite Army formed the National Front for Liberation, which was officially announced on 28 May. In September 2021 one of the group members kidnapped a 16 year old girl just as she was released from a prison (converted from "the former Asayish Center" post Turkish occupation) on 23 May 2020. She was taken to the Idlib Governorate where she stated that he enslaved her similar to ISIS has done previously.

References

External links

Youtube channel (no longer available)Twitter account
Anti-government factions of the Syrian civil war Free Syrian Army Anti-ISIL factions in Syria Turkish supported militant groups of the Syrian civil war {{Paramilitary-org-stub