Mystery Shrouds al-Nusra Leader al-Jolani

Phil Sands and Suharto Maayeh of The National profile Jabhat al-Nusra leader Mohammed al-Jolani , who they say is “surrounded by layers of fiction.” His real identity is unknown.

“Believed abducted one minute, issuing ultimatums the next — all in a day’s work for al-Jolani. It was not the first time that the secretive commander had apparently returned from the netherworld. On at least two previous occasions he was reported dead, only to emerge unscathed,”!they write.

“Although among the most central players in the Syrian conflict, and a household name across the Middle East, remarkably little is known about him. He is a ghost whose nom de guerre evokes fear or admiration. His real identity remains hidden, a remarkable achievement in a world of social media, telephone cameras, pervasive internet spying and government-sponsored leaks.

“In the absence of fact, speculation has flourished, some of it vaguely credible, some openly fantastical, including the suggestion he is none other than Osama bin Laden. Another theory has al-Jolani as a CIA operative, a deep cover agent sent to infiltrate al-Qaida and break it apart.”

Islamic Front “on Verge of Collapse”

In Foreign Policy, Hassan Hassan explores the problems that have beset the Islamic Front, once the great white hope of the Syrian opposition.

“Several Islamic Front brigades have been weakened by deep internal divisions over how to handle ISIS. The formerly powerful rebel brigade Suqour al-Sham, for example, has now been reduced to a minor faction after two of its most powerful factions defected. The brigade made the fatal mistake of first aligning itself with the Free Syrian Army to fight ISIS, but then, after other members of the Islamic Front joined the battle, signing a truce with ISIS. Its two constituent parts that left, Liwa Dawoud and Liwa Siyoof al-Haqqa, were sympathetic to ISIS; Liwa Dawoud first joined the jihadi group outright, but on Feb. 18, formed a new alliance that distanced itself from both the Islamic Front and ISIS.

“Two top rebel leaders told Foreign Policy that the Islamic Front had collapsed in all but name. Speaking from northern Idlib governorate, Col. Haitham Afisa, the Free Syrian Army’s newly appointed deputy head, said that Islamic Front members recognize the failure of the alliance, but due to the fact that they present themselves as the most powerful alliance in Syria, they fear that its official demise would incur significant financial and political costs. He added that part of the challenge for the Islamic Front has been that many of its fighters required religious rulings to fight fellow jihadists in ISIS. ‘Each one needed a fatwa,’ he said.

“Ahrar al-Sham has also been riven by disagreements over what to do about ISIS. Some of its factions, for example, manned checkpoints with the jihadi group, while others were furious at ISIS for killing their commanders. The unprecedented polarization in the wake of the continuing jihadi infighting has revealed these fault lines, and the sand seems to be slowly shifting underneath the Islamic Front as a result.”

Syria Speeds Chemical Weapons Deliveries

The New York Times reports that the Syrian government, facing international pressure after missing crucial deadlines, is speeding up its disposal of its chemical weapons cache, proposing new deadlines for April.

“The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, based in the Hague, reported the new timetable after a meeting of its executive council.

“It said that Syria delivered two consignments to the port of Latakia last week, and that another significant shipment was expected this week. Once it arrives, the group said, Syria will have handed over more than one-third of its 1,200-ton chemical weapons arsenal and 23 percent of its deadliest agents, known as Priority 1 chemicals.”

Sigrid Kaag, the coordinator of the mission to eliminate Syria’s arsenal, said it was “good progress” and that she expects “further acceleration and intensification of effort.”

The paper says that “Syria was widely criticized internationally for falling far behind the original schedule, and not all countries that belong to the chemical weapons watchdog group were satisfied with the new timetable. ‘We would say it could do with further improvement,’ said a European diplomat attending the council’s meetings.”

Suggested Reads from Our Editorial Team

AP: Syrian Aircraft Strike Near Lebanese Border Town

Reuters: World Powers Responsible for Failing to Stop Syria War

Reuters: Chemical Weapons Used in Syria Appear to Come From Army Stockpile

NY Times: Israel Fires on Militants Along Syrian Border

LA Times: At least 50 Americans Have Joined Extremist Units, U.S. Says