The Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union (, "Islamic Union of the Soldiers of the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

") was an alliance of

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

Islamist groups affiliated with the

Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ('' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar, Imam and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna in 1928. Al-Banna's teachings s ...

. It was active in the

Rif Dimashq Governorate Rif Dimashq Governorate (, Literal translation, lit. "Damascus Countryside Governorate" or "Damascus Suburb") is one of the fourteen Governorates of Syria, governorates (provinces) of Syria. It is situated in the southwestern part of the country. ...

during the Syrian Civil War.

History

In early November 2013, a large number of Sunni Islamist rebel groups in the wider Damascus region announced the formation of the “Greater Damascus Operations Room”, excluding

Jaysh al-Islam Jaysh al-Islam (, meaning ''Army of Islam''), formerly known as Liwa al-Islam (, Brigade of Islam), is a coalition of Islamist rebel units involved in the Syrian Civil War. The group was part of the Free Syrian Army's Supreme Military Counc ...

and the most radical jihadis

al-Nusra Front Al-Nusra Front or Jabhat al-Nusra or Jabhat Nusrat Ahl al-Sham, also known as Front for the Conquest of the Levant, and also later known as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham was a Salafi-jihadist organization that fought against Ba'athist Syria, Ba'athist ...

and the

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant The Islamic State (IS), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and Daesh, is a transnational Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS occupied signi ...

. Later that month, five of the larger and most locally well-established groups within the Operations Room—the Habib al-Mustafa Brigades and Battalions, the Amjad al-Islam Gathering, the

Sahaba The Companions of the Prophet () were the Muslim disciples and followers of the Islamic prophet Muhammad who saw or met him during his lifetime. The companions played a major role in Muslim battles, society, hadith narration, and governance ...

Brigades and Battalions, the Youth of Huda Battalions and the Shield of the Capital Brigade—declared the creation of the Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union. Abu Muhammad al-Fatah, commander of the Youth of Huda Battalions, was appointed as leader of the formation. The group was initially allied with

—the largest rebel group in eastern Ghouta—with Islamic Union leader Abu Muhammad al-Fatah being the deputy of Jaysh al-Islam leader

Zahran Alloush Zahran Alloush (, 1971 – 25 December 2015) was a Syrian Islamist rebel leader who was the commander of Jaysh al-Islam (Army of Islam), a major component of the Islamic Front, of which he was the military chief, and was described as one of the ...

in the Unified Military Command of Eastern Ghouta. The two groups subsequently came into conflict over control of smuggling tunnels in 2015. Jaysh al-Islam attacked the Islamic Union's headquarters several times between 2015 and early 2016. As a result, Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union fighters based in eastern Ghouta, including the entire Habib al-Mustafa Brigades and Battalions, announced their "full incorporation" into the al-Rahman Legion, though reiterating that its fighters based in the western Damascus suburbs of

Darayya Darayya () is a suburb of Damascus in Syria, the centre of Darayya lying south-west of the centre of Damascus. Administratively it belongs to Rif Dimashq. History and population Darayya is one of the oldest cities in Syria, reportedly the pl ...

and Muadamiyat as well as in southern Damascus would still operate under the Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union banner and were not a part of this merger. The Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union fighters who joined the Rahman Legion were barred from leadership positions and their weapons were seized and redistributed among other Legion members. On 26 February 2016, Syrian Army Special Forces killed the second leader of the Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union, Faysal al-Shami ("Abu Malek"), after intense clashes in the Darayya Association Quarter. On 19 March 2017, Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union fighters who left Darayya and Muadamiyat between August and October 2016 as part of the evacuation deal to

Idlib Idlib (, ; also spelt Idleb or Edlib) is a city in northwestern Syria, and is the capital of the Idlib Governorate. It has an elevation of nearly above sea level, and is southwest of Aleppo. It is located near the border with Turkey. History ...

joined the

Sham Legion The Sham Legion (, ''Faylaq al-Shām'' lit. Levant Legion) was 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 affil ...

, reducing the presence of the Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union to two pockets in the

Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...

and Rif Damascus areas. After the completion of the Beit Jinn offensive in January 2018 and the Southern Damascus offensive the following month, Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union presence was further reduced to a single pocket in the southern outskirt of

. In May 2018, the remaining members evacuated to Idlib. Following the evacuation, the groups ceased to be active.

References

{{Syrian Civil War Anti-Assad factions of the Syrian civil war Anti-ISIL factions in Syria Military units and formations established in 2013 Sunni Islamist groups

History

See also

References