Rebel Infighting Spreads to City in East
Diaa Hadid of the Associated Press reports on weekend clashes in Raqqa between rebel fighters and their foes from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), al-Qaida’s Syrian arm.
“The rebel-on-rebel fighting in the eastern city of Raqqa reflects a widening war within a war in Syria, this one against radical extremists,” she writes.
“It also suggests emboldened rebels are trying to completely overrun their al-Qaida rivals. The infighting has been the most serious since armed groups initially rose to try to overthrow the rule of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
“The clashes erupted in the northern provinces of Aleppo and Idlib on Friday after residents there accused ISIL fighters of killing a popular doctor. An activist group, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, estimated that at least 100 fighters on both sides have been killed since Friday.
“The rebels fighting against [ISIS] are an unruly series of moderate and ultra-conservative groups who have little to unite them, save for their hatred of the al-Qaida group. [ISIS] is dominated by foreign fighters who initially fanned into Syria from neighboring Iraq in March and muscled into areas that rebels wrested from Assad-loyal forces, imposing their deeply conservative interpretation of Islamic law.”
Raqqa was the first city to fall to moderate opposition forces, and later, similarly, to ISIS. Meanwhile, the AFP reports that over the weekend, rebel fighters were also able to free 50 hostages taken by ISIS.
Rebels, Regime Agree to Truce in Damascus District of Barzeh
The AFP reports that rebels in another Damascus village have agreed to a truce with government forces after the latter’s months-long siege of the area cut civilians off from much-needed humanitarian aid.
A statement from the opposition local council said that the two sides agreed to “‘the withdrawal of Assad’s army from all of Barzeh, and the cleaning of the streets [of abandoned corpses], in preparation for the road to be opened’ by the rebels.
“Local activist Abu Ammar told AFP via the Internet that although the agreed clauses have not yet been implemented, ‘the intensity of the fighting has been reduced greatly in the past three days.’ The truce also envisages that residents who had fled the district will be able to return within two weeks, and that ‘services will be restored. Much of Barzeh has been destroyed in the fighting and near-daily bombardment by the army since it became an all-out war zone in March last year.”
Kerry Says Iran Might Play Role in Syria Peace Talks
The New York Times reports that Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that Iran, a longtime enemy of the U.S., could play a role in Syrian peace talks later this month in Switzerland.
“It was the first time that a senior American official has indicated that Iran might be involved in the session, which is scheduled to begin Jan. 22, even if it was not a formal participant,” the paper writes.
“Mr. Kerry said there would be limits on Iran’s involvement unless it accepted that the purpose of the conference should be to work out transitional arrangements for governing Syria if opponents of President Bashar al-Assad could persuade him to relinquish power. Iran has provided military and political support to Mr. Assad.
“’Now, could they contribute from the sidelines?’ Mr. Kerry said, referring to a situation in which Iran sticks by the Assad government and does not accept that goal. ‘Are there ways for them conceivably to weigh in? Can their mission that is already in Geneva be there in order to help the process?’”
Suggested Reads from Our Editorial Team:
AFP: Jihadists Kills Rebels in New Syria War Front
Guardian: Jihadists Exploit Weak Border to Fight in Iraq and Syria
CNN: Doctors Hide Patients as Rebel Infighting Threatens Hospital
NPR: Al-Qaida Extremists Fight for Influence in Iraq, Syria
LA Times: Relatively Moderate Syrian Rebels Gain Against Extremists