In a claimed interview, a regional “Emir” of the Islamist faction Jabhat al-Nusra in Hama Province has slammed the Islamic State of Iraq and asserted JAN’s autonomy in operations inside Syria.

Syrian news aggregator All4Syria posted the comments of a regional Emir of Jabhat al-Nusra (JAN) in Hama Province.

Whilst it is not possible to confirm the authenticity of the interview, the declaration matches statements — dating from JAN’s rejection in April of a “merger” with ISI — emphasizing the faction’s focus on local “jihad” and co-operation with other mujahedin from the area to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Asked about the state of the relationship between JAN and the Islamic State of Iraq and As-Sham (ISIS), the Emir — named as Abu Idriss — started by criticizing the assassination of Free Syrian Army Commander Abu Basir, also known as Kamal Hamami, who was shot in the head by ISIS insurgents earlier this month.

The Emir was quoted as saying:

We ask our Syrian brothers to separate between JAN and ISIS, ISIS wanted emirates and countries, and this is what we did not agree with at all. Our group’s goal is jihad for the sake of God and in order to redress the injustice of this nation, and when the regime falls, JAN will sit with our brother Mujahideen in other Islamic factions to choose the form of state acceptable to everyone and will not exclude anyone ever, everyone gave their blood, and everyone has the right to their opinion.

The Emir denied that Jabhat al-Nusra has killed innocent civilians — saying that there was a deliberate media campaign organized by the Americans to tarnish JAN’s reputation:

Now I want to talk about the media hype and the organized campaign being waged by the US to tarnish JAN’s image. I’ll tell you very clearly we are not responsible for killing the child Mohammed Katta in Aleppo, who was killed by ISIS and falsely attributed to us….

The same applies to the events of Dana and Azaz and executions in Ar-Raqqa [areas in northern Syria in which the Islamic State of Iraq has established a presence], other acts carried out by ISIS and falsely attributed to JAN. We reject the actions of the state, and we see that the foreigners from Iraq have a lot of impoliteness and we do not trust them, and this one of the most important causes of separation between ISIS and JAN.

The Emir added that, in the Hama countryside where JAN are operating, there are currently few foreign fighters. He said most of JAN’s personnel were local Syrian youth, fighting for local issues and uninterested in outside issues.

The Emir praised the discipline of Jabhat al-Nusra fighters, recalling how all of the “great people of JAN arose” on the day that the USA designated the group a terrorist organization.

He concluded, “As long as [JAN leader] Abu Mohammad Al Joulani is our Emir, we will remain the Jabhat al-Nusra that Syrians want.”

(Featured Photo: Claimed image of Jabhat al-Nusra commander Abu Idriss)