LATEST: Washington Post is Latest Outlet for Simplistic “Jabhat al-Nusra Takes Over Insurgency” Narrative
The Syrian insurgent faction Jabhat al-Nusra has executed a Lebanese policeman and vowed to kill more of the abducted security personnel, retaliating to the arrests by Lebanese authorities of women who are relatives of the group’s fighters.
In a video posted on Friday, a Jabhat al-Nusra commander said Ali Bazzal was killed after Ola Mithqal al-Oqaily, the wife of commander Anas Sharkas, and their children were not released.
The group also cited the detention of Saja al-Dulaimi, whom Lebanese authorities said was briefly married to Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and had his daughter — also imprisoned, along with two of her half-brothers.
Anas Sharkas, also known as Abu Ali al-Shishani, said:
If the sisters that were unjustly arrested are not released, then after a short period of time the death sentence will be executed against another prisoner we hold.
We will not accept anything but the release of all our women and children…One of my children is 4 years old, the second is less than 6 months old. How dare you arrest them with their mother?
Executing one of the prisoners of war in our custody – Ali Bazzal – is the [minimal] response to filthy Lebanese Army actions, which are emulating Hezbollah’s and Alawites’ practices of detaining women and children.
PHOTO: Policeman Ali Bazzal, executed on Friday, in a hostage video from late NovemberIf our sisters, who were unjustly and wrongfully arrested, are not released we will execute another soldier in our custody in the very near future.
Jabhat al-Nusra had threatened since late November to kill Bazzal if female detainees were not freed by the Lebanese authorities.
Bazzal’s family and supporters blocked roads in the Bekaa Valley in northeast Lebanon to protest the killing, as the army deployed in the area.
More than 30 Lebanese security personnel were seized by the Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra in fighting in and near the Lebanese border town of Arsal last August. Two have been executed by the Islamic State, and Bazzal was the second killed by Jabhat al-Nusra.
Washington Post is Latest Outlet for Simplistic “Jabhat al-Nusra Takes Over Insurgency” Narrative
The Washington Post is the latest major outlet to be used by disillusioned Syrian elements to claim that Jabhat al-Nusra has overwhelmed the insurgency in northwestern Syria.
Headlining “Al-Qaeda Group’s Gains in Syria Undermine U.S. Strategy”, the article summarizes, “Jabhat al-Nusra has been steadily consolidating its position as the single most powerful military force….[It] has overrun towns and villages throughout the province, secured supply routes into neighboring Turkey and potentially paved the way for the establishment of an Islamic ’emirate’.”
The article does not produce any evidence about the actual state of relations between Jabhat al-Nusra and other insurgent groups, but merely cites unnamed “rebel commanders” and a supportive analyst. Its only identified military source, a spokesman from the Harakat Hazm brigade, points to the real reason for elevating Jabhat al-Nusra: , but he does not actually support the story’s denunciation of Jabhat al-Nusra — demands for US assistance: “If we see our support continue at the same levels we’ve had in the past, in the next three to six months we will see the moderate rebels disappear.”
Lost in the spin are the significant developments in the insurgency. Jabhat al-Nusra is far from alone in Idlib Province. The Islamic Front, much larger than Nusra, is also in control of territory, including the major checkpoint on the Turkish border, and Free Syrian Army battalions continue to be involved in fighting against regime forces.
Nor does the article note that the largest insurgent bloc in Syria, the Revolutionary Command Council, was established in late November. Its membership does not include Jabhat al-Nusra, but the bloc of more than 90 factions is likely to fight alongside Nusra on the frontlines.
Islamic State Attack Continues Near Deir Ez Zor Military Airport
The Islamic State continues to attack regime positions near Deir Ez Zor Military Airport in eastern Syria.
The jihadists, who began their offensive on Wednesday, faced artillery shelling from the Syrian military. Pro-regime accounts also claimed that reinforcements had reached the area.
Activists also said the two sides fought in the Sinaa neighborhood of Deir Ez Zor city.
The Islamic State has taken villages near the airport. including Jafrah, where they allegedly executed 19 Syrian troops who tried to flee.
