Suqour Al-Sham
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The Suqour al-Sham Brigades (, ), also known as the Falcons of the Levant Brigades, was an armed rebel organisation formed by Ahmed Abu Issa early in the Syrian Civil War to fight against the
Syrian Government The government of Syria takes place in a presidential system and is currently in a transitionary period under and led by a transitional government. The seat of the government is located in Damascus, Syria. On 8 December 2024, after the succ ...
. It was a member of the Islamic Front and a former unit of the
Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...
and the
Syrian Islamic Liberation Front The Syrian Islamic Liberation Front (SILF; , "Jabhat Tahrīr Sūriya al-Islāmiyyah") was a coalition of Syrian Islamist rebel groups nominally under the command of the Supreme Military Council (Syria), Supreme Military Council of the Free Syria ...
. They have a history of coordinating with
Ahrar al-Sham Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya (), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham, was a coalition of multiple Sunni Islamist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bas ...
and
al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...
's
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 ...
(a group rebranded as
Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) was a Sunni Islamist political organisation and paramilitary group involved in the Syrian civil war. It was formed on 28January 2017 as a merger between several armed groups: Jaysh al-Ahrar (an Ahrar al-Sham facti ...
since January 2017), though clashes with the latter broke out in January 2017. In March 2015, the Suqour al-Sham Brigades merged with
Ahrar ash-Sham Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya (), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham, was a coalition of multiple Sunni Islamist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bas ...
, but left Ahrar al-Sham in September 2016. Also, in September 2016, they joined the
Army of Conquest The Army of Conquest () or Jaish al-Fatah, abbreviated JaF, was a joint command center of Sunni Islamist Syrian rebel factions participating in the Syrian Civil War. The alliance was formed in March 2015 under the supervision and coordinati ...
, of which
Ahrar al-Sham Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya (), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham, was a coalition of multiple Sunni Islamist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bas ...
was also a member. On 25 January 2017, Suqour al-Sham rejoined Ahrar al-Sham, but later became independent. At the
Syrian Revolution Victory Conference The Syrian Revolution Victory Conference, officially titled the Conference for Announcing the Victory of the Syrian Revolution (), was held at the Presidential Palace in Damascus, Syria, on 29 January 2025. It was attended by the commanders of v ...
, which was held on 29 January 2025, most factions of the armed opposition, including the Suqour al-Sham Brigades, announced their dissolution and were incorporated into the newly formed
Ministry of Defense A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divided ...
.


Ideology

Suqour al-Sham's ideology has been described by Asher Berman of the
Institute for the Study of War The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) is an American nonprofit research group and advocacy think tank founded in 2007 by military historian Kimberly Kagan and headquartered in Washington, D.C. ISW provides research and analysis of modern arm ...
as Islamist but not having a global
jihadist Jihadism is a neologism for modern, armed militant Political aspects of Islam, Islamic movements that seek to Islamic state, establish states based on Islamic principles. In a narrower sense, it refers to the belief that armed confrontation ...
outlook. In a sermon delivered in a mosque in April 2012, Abu Issa said Muslims had lost their honor because they had abandoned
jihad ''Jihad'' (; ) is an Arabic word that means "exerting", "striving", or "struggling", particularly with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it encompasses almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with God in Islam, God ...
, replacing aspirations for martyrdom with a fear of death. However, in an interview in June 2012 Issa described his vision for a post-
Assad Asad (), sometimes written as Assad, is an Arabic male given name literally meaning "lion". It is used in nicknames such as ''Asad Allāh'', one of the by-names for Ali ibn Abi Talib. People Among prominent people named "Asad" or "Assad" a ...
Syria as a moderate Islamic state "without imposing it on society." A publication of the
Counter Terrorism Centre Counter Terrorism Centre (CTC) (, TEK) is a Hungarian government agency responsible for national and international counter terrorism including detection, prevention and interruption. The agency has a police tactical unit to respond terrorist ...
in August 2013 described Suqour al-Sham as belonging to the most stridently Islamist wing of the
Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...
and the
Syrian Islamic Liberation Front The Syrian Islamic Liberation Front (SILF; , "Jabhat Tahrīr Sūriya al-Islāmiyyah") was a coalition of Syrian Islamist rebel groups nominally under the command of the Supreme Military Council (Syria), Supreme Military Council of the Free Syria ...
. After ending relations with those two organisations it joined the Islamic Front in November 2013, a charter released by the new group described their shared beliefs as rejecting
representative democracy Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy or electoral democracy, is a type of democracy where elected delegates represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies func ...
and
secularism Secularism is the principle of seeking to conduct human affairs based on naturalistic considerations, uninvolved with religion. It is most commonly thought of as the separation of religion from civil affairs and the state and may be broadened ...
, instead seeking to establish an
Islamic State 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 jihadism, Salafi jihadist organization and unrecognized quasi-state. IS ...
ruled by a
Majlis-ash-Shura In Arab culture, a Majlis-ash-Shura (; Shura Council in English) is an advisory council or consultative council. In Islamic context, the Majlis-ash-Shura is one of two ways that a khalifa (Islamic leader) may be selected, the other way being by ...
and implementing
Sharia Sharia, Sharī'ah, Shari'a, or Shariah () is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition based on Islamic holy books, scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran, Qur'an and hadith. In Islamic terminology ''sharīʿah'' ...
law.


Activity and tactics

As Suquor al-Sham grew in prominence, rebel units in neighboring regions such as
Aleppo Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...
and Idlib Governorate declared themselves to be members of Suqour al-Sham. The central leadership sometimes recognized their affiliation, but the amount of coordination with these groups was believed to be low. By June 2013 the group had recognised some 17 sub-brigades. Suqour al-Sham has been known to carry out roadside IED attacks targeting the
Syrian Army The Syrian Army is the land force branch of the Syrian Armed Forces. Up until the fall of the Assad regime, the Syrian Arab Army existed as a land force branch of the Syrian Arab Armed Forces, which dominanted the military service of the fo ...
since its inception. The organization has also carried out attacks on security checkpoints using VBIEDs that had been secretly rigged with explosives and driven unwittingly by released captives, upon reaching the target they were detonated remotely. The group had not been known to carry out
suicide bombings A suicide attack (also known by a wide variety of other names, see below) is a deliberate attack in which the perpetrators knowingly sacrifice their own lives as part of the attack. These attacks are a form of murder–suicide that is ofte ...
as of mid-July 2012.


History

After three months of protests in 2011, the Syrian government released many high-profile
Salafist The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a fundamentalist revival movement within Sunni Islam, originating in the late 19th century and influential in the Islamic world to this day. The name "''Salafiyya''" is a self-designation, claiming a retur ...
Islamist prisoners from
Sednaya Prison Sednaya Prison (), also known as "Human Slaughterhouse" (), was a military prison and death camp in the north of Damascus, Syria, operated by Ba'athist Syria, Ba'athist Syria. Those imprisoned included civilian detainees, Armed factions in the ...
such as
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 ...
,
Hassan Aboud Hassan Abboud (), also known under his ''nom de guerre'' Abu Abdullah al-Hamawi, was a Syrian militant and political leader who was one of the founders of Ahrar al-Sham. He was part of its leadership until his death in September 2014. Biography ...
and Ahmed Abu Issa. The Suqour al-Sham Battalion was formed in September 2011 under the leadership of Ahmed Abu Issa in the town of Sarjeh in the Jabal al-Zawiya region of
Idlib Governorate Idlib Governorate ( / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Idlib'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in northwestern Syria, bordering Turkey's Hatay province to the north, Aleppo Governorate to the east, Hama Governorate to the sou ...
. The group's fighters were a mix of military defectors and civilian volunteers. According to its website, the brigade has a civilian and a military wing. The civilian wing was run by a
shura council In Arab culture, a Majlis-ash-Shura (; Shura Council in English) is an advisory council or consultative council. In Islamic context, the Majlis-ash-Shura is one of two ways that a khalifa (Islamic leader) may be selected, the other way being b ...
headed by Ahmed Abu Issa, this wing was responsible for acquiring military supplies, food, and media operations. The military wing was independent, but acts on the advice of the civilian leadership. Suquor al-Sham initially identified itself as part of the
Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...
and recognized the
Syrian National Council The Syrian National Council (SNC), sometimes known as the Syrian National Transitional Council or the National Council of Syria, was a Syrian opposition coalition, based in Istanbul, Turkey, formed in August 2011 during the Syrian civil upris ...
as the "chief representative of the revolution abroad;" however, the group does not view the SNC as an organization that can legitimately issue orders. In September 2013, Suqour al-Sham was one of a number of rebel groups that issued a communique stating that the SNC was not representative of them and that they were abandoning it. This was followed in December 2013 by a statement from Suqour al-Sham's leader, announcing that they were no longer part of the Free Syrian Army. In September 2012, a large number of Islamist rebel brigades, including the
Farouq Brigades The Farouq Brigades (; also spelt Farooq or Farook) was a Syrian Islamist rebel group formed by a number of Homs-based members of the Free Syrian Army in the early phases of the Syrian Civil War. The group rapidly expanded in size and prominen ...
and the Suquor al-Sham formed the
Syrian Islamic Liberation Front The Syrian Islamic Liberation Front (SILF; , "Jabhat Tahrīr Sūriya al-Islāmiyyah") was a coalition of Syrian Islamist rebel groups nominally under the command of the Supreme Military Council (Syria), Supreme Military Council of the Free Syria ...
, under the leadership of Suquor al-Sham commander Ahmed Abu Issa. Abu Issa claimed the new Front had more than 40,000 fighters and aimed to establish a state with an ''Islamic reference''. This alliance was superseded in November 2013 by a new alliance called the Islamic Front, again led by Abu Issa. By early 2014, Suqour al-Sham had reportedly been substantially weakened following the outbreak of open warfare between many Syrian rebel factions 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 ...
. On 21 January 2014, Suqour al-Sham's top religious official, Abu Abderrahman al-Sarmini, defected from the group, in protest of the internecine warfare. In February 2014, the group's top military commander, Mohammed al-Dik (alias Abu Hussein), was killed in an ISIL attack. In the same month, Suqour al-Sham's chief of staff and one of its most powerful founding factions, the Suyouf al-Haq Brigade, announced an unapproved separate peace with ISIL and defected from the group. Suyouf al-Haq joined with
Liwa Dawud Liwa Dawud (Arabic:لواء داوود, liwa' dawud, Banner of Dave) was an armed group in the Syrian Civil War headquartered in Samrin in the Idlib Governorate and originated as a subunit in Suqour al-Sham then later became an independent facti ...
, a powerful Suqour al-Sham faction that had defected in 2013, to form a new group called Jaysh al-Sham, or the Army of the Levant. In May 2014, the group conducted joint suicide attacks with the al-Nusra Front that involved American foreign fighter,
Moner Mohammad Abu Salha Moner Mohammad Abu Salha (; also written Munir Mohammed Abou Saleha; October 28, 1991 – May 25, 2014), also known by the ''nom de guerre'' ( ''kunya'') Abu Hurayra al-Amriki (Arabic: أبو هريرة الأمريكي), was an American Islam ...
who took part in one of the series of suicide bombings himself against Syrian government forces in
Ariha Ariha (), also called Riha (), is a town in northwest Syria, administratively part of the Idlib Governorate, located south of Idlib. Nearby localities include Urum al-Jawz to the southwest, Sarjah to the south, Kafr Latah to the southeast, Maar ...
. In September 2016, after more than a year of being absorbed by
Ahrar al-Sham Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya (), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham, was a coalition of multiple Sunni Islamist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bas ...
, the Suqour al-Sham Brigades left Ahrar al-Sham while continuing to use the Islamic Front logo. Also, in September 2016, they joined the
Army of Conquest The Army of Conquest () or Jaish al-Fatah, abbreviated JaF, was a joint command center of Sunni Islamist Syrian rebel factions participating in the Syrian Civil War. The alliance was formed in March 2015 under the supervision and coordinati ...
, of which
Ahrar al-Sham Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya (), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham, was a coalition of multiple Sunni Islamist units that coalesced into a single brigade and later a division in order to fight against the Syrian Government led by Bas ...
was also a member. On 25 January 2017, Suqour al-Sham rejoined Ahrar al-Sham amid clashes with the
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 ...
. By 2018 the group left Ahrar al-Sham again. On 1 August 2018, it joined the
National Front for Liberation National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...
, with Suqour al-Sham commander Ahmad Sarhan ("Abu Satif") named as the NFL's first deputy commander. On 6 August 2019,
al-Masdar ''Al-Masdar News'' (sometimes abbreviated ''AMN'') () was an online newspaper founded by Leith Abou Fadel. Al-Masdar is Arabic for "the source". ''Al-Masdar''s coverage focuses largely on conflict zones in the Middle East: Syria, Yemen, and Ir ...
which has been described as a pro-Syrian government news site, claimed that the Russian military carried out an ambush resulting in the death of 14 fighters from the group in the northern part of the
Hama Governorate Hama Governorate ( / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ḥamā'') is one of the 14 Governorates of Syria, governorates of Syria. It is situated in western-central Syria, bordering Idlib Governorate, Idlib and Aleppo Governorates to the north, Raqqa Gove ...
during a Syrian government
offensive Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...
in the area. According to a Syrian opposition source and an activist in Afrin, the Suqour al-Sham Brigades were among the Turkish-backed insurgent groups which volunteered to send fighters to Libya as part of a Turkish-led operation to aid the Tripoli-based
Government of National Accord The Government of National Accord (GNA; ) was an interim government for Libya that was formed under the terms of the Libyan Political Agreement, a United Nations–led initiative, signed on 17 December 2015. The agreement was unanimously endors ...
in December 2019.


War crimes

The UN Commission of Inquiry for Syria reported that the group unlawfully detained Hekmat Khalil al-De’ar for alleged dealings with the
Syrian Democratic Forces The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is a Kurds in Syria, Kurdish-led coalition of U.S.-backed Left-wing politics, left-wing ethnic militias and rebel groups, and serves as the official military wing of the Democratic Autonomous Administration ...
. His dead body returned to his family the next day. The autopsy showed that he had been subjected to torture.


See also

*
List of armed groups in the Syrian Civil War A number of states and armed groups have involved themselves in the Syrian civil war (2011–present) as belligerents. The main groups were Ba'athist Syria and allies, Syrian opposition, the Syrian opposition and allies, Al-Qaeda and affiliate ...


References


Sources

* {{Sister project links , commons=Syrian Civil War (2011-present) , n=2011 Syria anti-government protests , wikt=no , b=no , q=no , s=no , v=no , species=no , display=the Syrian civil war Anti-Assad factions of the Syrian civil war Anti-ISIL factions in Syria Sunni Islamist groups Military units and formations established in 2011 Turkish supported militant groups of the Syrian civil war 2025 disestablishments in Syria Military units and formations disestablished in 2024