Syrian Jihadism by Aron Lund

efugee community in Lebanon. Among them are Osbat el-Ansar (“League of Adherents”), a
Palestinian group concentrated in the Ein el-Hilwe camp in southern Lebanon; Fath el-Islam,
which will be described in some detail below; and Jund el-Sham (“Soldiers of the Levant”), a
now defunct jihadi group which on several occasions clashed with Syrian authorities in the
mid-2000s. Individual Syrians have also been active in jihadi organizations outside of the
Levant, most notably Abu Moussaab el-Souri, a maverick guerrilla theoretician and sometime
al-Qaeda member. 57
Since the uprising began in March 2011, and particularly during 2012, several new groups
have formed. Today, the radical religious fringe of the Syrian rebel movement is composed of
a plethora of small and mostly local networks, some of which even lack a name, alongside
vaguely defined religious factions within the larger non-jihadi movements, and a small
number of disciplined and doctrinaire salafi-jihadi groups. Distinctions are often hard to
make. There are those that share only some features of contemporary salafi-jihadi ideology.
For example, many insurgent groups will speak of jihad and use symbols associated with the
transnational salafi-jihadi movement, like the black-and-white flag popularized by al-Qaeda
in Iraq, 58 but not all of them are truly motivated by salafi-jihadi ideology. There are also
organizations, which, while sincerely Islamist, cannot be considered a part of the salafi-jihadi
movement, e.g. those aligned with the Muslim Brotherhood. On the ground, within single
villages or clans, political factions can sometimes cooperate in perfect harmony, sharing
bases, arsenals and even members, regardless of their theoretical and doctrinaire differences.
Joint operations including both jihadi and non-jihadi groups are common, 59
and many
57 Brynjar Lia, Architect of Global Jihad: The Life of Al Qaeda Strategist Abu Mus'ab Al-Suri, Columbia University Press, 2008.
It is generally believed that Abu Moussaab (real name: Mustafa Sitt-Maryam Nassar), who was captured by the CIA in Pakistan
in 2005 and handed over to Syrian authorities, has been released by the Assad regime in late 2011 or early 2012. His current
whereabouts are unknown. See Aaron Y. Zelin, "Confirmed by online jihadis: Abu mus’ab al-Suri has been released from
prison", Jihadology, February 2, 2012, http://www.jihadology.net/2012/02/02/confirmed-by-online-jihadis-abu-
mu%E1%B9%A3ab-al-suri-has-been-released-from-prison.
58 Often incorrectly referred to as ”the flag of al-Qaeda”, this black banner bears the Islamic creed of ”there is no God but God”,
with the second part ”Mohammed is his prophet” inscribed in an imperfect circle below. Its design is inspired by a seal allegedly
used by the prophet Mohammed. The flag does not formally represent any one group, but it is very strongly associated with the
salafi-jihadi movement. For an illustration, see http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/No_god_but_God.jpg.
59 For example, this video purports to show a joint operation between the Ahrar el-Sham Brigades, the Suqour el-Sham Division,
and “others” belonging to some unit of the FSA: "Kataeb Ahrar el-Sham || Amaliya mushtarika ma'a Suqour el-Sham waakhirin"
("Ahrar el-Sham Brigades || Joint operation with the Suqour el-Sham and others"), YouTube video uploaded by abo
sofyan, August 14, 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdDBpjy2REA.
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