The Sham Liberation Army ( ar-at, جيش تحرير الشام, Jaysh Tahrir al-Sham), originally called the Sham Liberation Brigade ( ar-at, لواء تحرير الشام, Liwa Tahrir al-Sham), is an armed rebel group active in the
Syrian Civil War. It was founded and is led by Firas Bitar, a
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
who defected from the
Syrian Arab Army
The Syrian Army, officially the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) ( ar, الْجَيْشُ الْعَرَبيُّ السُّورِيُّ, al-Jayš al-ʿArabī as-Sūrī), is the army, land force branch of the Syrian Armed Forces. It is the dominant military ...
in 2012. Until 2016, its sole opponent was the
Syrian Armed Forces
The Syrian Arab Armed Forces ( ar, الْقُوَّاتُ الْمُسَلَّحَةُ الْعَرَبِيَّةُ السُّورِيَّةُ, al-Quwwāt al-Musallaḥah al-ʿArabīyah as-Sūrīyah) are the military forces of the Syrian Arab Re ...
and its allied militias; it rejected any fighting with the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...
until ISIL attacked its fighters in February 2016.
In September 2015, the Sham Liberation Army and other rebel groups in the Qalamoun Mountains formed Saraya Ahl al-Sham ( ar, سرايا أهل الشام; Company of the People of the Levant).
History
In November 2014,
Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
Abdullah al-Rifai of the 11th Special Forces Division of Saraya Ahl al-Sham was arrested by the
Lebanese Armed Forces
)
, founded = 1 August 1945
, current_form = 1991
, disbanded =
, branches = Lebanese Ground ForcesLebanese Air Force Lebanese Navy
, headquarters = Yarze, Lebanon
, flying_hours =
, websit ...
near
Arsal
Arsal (also spelled Aarsal, Ersal or 'Irsal; ar, عرسال), is a town and municipality situated east of Labweh, northeast of Beirut, in Baalbek District of Baalbek-Hermel Governorate, Lebanon. . He was detained by the
General Directorate of General Security
The General Security Directorate ( ar, الامن العام, al-Amn al-'Aam; french: La Sûreté Générale) is a Lebanese intelligence agency founded on July 21, 1921 and originally known as the "first bureau". On June 12, 1959, Decree-Law No. ...
and released on 2 January 2015. On 14 August, he was
assassinate
Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...
d in Arsal.
On 30 September 2015, Sham Liberation Army, along with 12 other FSA and
Islamist rebel factions, formed Saraya Ahl al-Sham in the western Qalamoun Mountains. The group maintained "good" relations with
al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
's
al-Nusra Front
Al-Nusra Front or Jabhat al-Nusra ( ar, جبهة النصرة لأهل الشام, Jabhat an-Nuṣrah li-Ahl ish-Sham lit. ''Front of the Supporters of the People of Syria/the Levant''), known as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham ( ar, جبهة فتح ال ...
and other groups in the former
Army of Conquest's Qalamoun branch.
[
In February 2016, the SLA along with eh Saraya Ahl al-Sham rejected the inter-rebel conflict during the Syrian Civil War against the ]Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...
, remaining neutral in the conflict and stating that its only opponent is the Syrian government
Government of the Syrian Arab Republic is the union government created by the constitution of Syria where by the president is the head of state and the prime minister is the head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Syr ...
.[ However, during the eastern Qalamoun offensive (September—October 2016), the group joined with the other rebels in fighting ISIL.
In February 2017, negotiations between Saraya Ahl al-Sham and ]Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
began in order to install a ceasefire
A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...
and for residents to return to the contest towns and villages between Hezbollah and the rebels.
On 27 May 2017, Tahrir al-Sham
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) (, transliteration: ', "Organization for the Liberation of the Levant" or "Levant Liberation Committee"), commonly referred to as Tahrir al-Sham, is a Sunni Islamist political and armed organisation involved in the ...
and Saraya Ahl al-Sham clashed with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...
in the western Qalamoun Mountains near Arsal
Arsal (also spelled Aarsal, Ersal or 'Irsal; ar, عرسال), is a town and municipality situated east of Labweh, northeast of Beirut, in Baalbek District of Baalbek-Hermel Governorate, Lebanon. . 33 fighters were killed from both sides.[
On 27 July 2017, a ceasefire agreement was reached by Hezbollah with Tahrir al-Sham and Saraya Ahl al-Sham in the Lebanese portion of the Qalamoun Mountains. The agreement called for Tahrir al-Sham forces to withdraw from Lebanon to ]Idlib
ar, إدلبي, Idlibi
, coordinates =
, elevation_m = 500
, area_code = 23
, geocode = C3871
, blank_name = Climate
, blank_info ...
, Saraya Ahl al-Sham forces to withdraw to the eastern Qalamoun Mountains, where opposition forces maintain a pocket of control, and exchanges of prisoners from both sides.
On 14 August 2017, the last 400 fighters of Saraya Ahl al-Sham coalition and their families departed the Lebanon–Syria border
The Lebanon–Syria border is 394 km (245 m) in length and runs from the Mediterranean coast in the north to the tripoint with Israel in the south.
Description
The border starts at confluence of the Nahr al-Kabir river with the Mediterranean ...
and headed to the eastern Qalamoun Mountains.[
In April 2018, the SLA, along with the rest of Saraya Ahl al-Sham evacuated to Afrin.
On 7 April 2018, the group published a statement condemning the Syrian Government, the Russian intervention and Hezbollah involvement in the war and requested that the ]United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
send in military forces to intervene.
Saraya Ahl Al-Sham Member groups
*Western Qalamoun Union
*Levant
The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is eq ...
Liberation Division
** Levant Liberation Brigade (Sham Liberation Army)
** Sadik Unit
** Martyr Mohammed Qassem Brigade
* al-Ghouta Martyrs Battalion
*Omar Haider Brigade
*11th Special Forces Division (formerly part of the Southern Front)
*Itasimou Bihabl al-Lah Rally
* al-Ghurabaa Brigade
*The Men from Qalamoun Brigade
*Western Qalamoun Rally
*Martyrs of Qastal
Al-Qastal ("Kastel", ar, القسطل) was a Palestinian people, Palestinian village located eight kilometers west of Jerusalem and named for a Crusader castle located on the hilltop. Used in 1948 during the Arab-Israeli War as a military base ...
Brigade
*Dira al-Qalamoun Battalion
*Martyrs of Nabek Battalion
* Ibn Taymiyyah
Ibn Taymiyyah (January 22, 1263 – September 26, 1328; ar, ابن تيمية), birth name Taqī ad-Dīn ʾAḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥalīm ibn ʿAbd al-Salām al-Numayrī al-Ḥarrānī ( ar, تقي الدين أحمد بن عبد الحليم ...
Battalion
See also
*List of armed groups in the Syrian Civil War
A number of states and armed groups have involved themselves in the ongoing Syrian Civil War as belligerents.
Syrian Arab Republic and allies
A number of sources have emphasized that as of at least late-2015/early-2016 the Syrian Arab Republic ...
References
{{Syrian Civil War
Anti-government factions of the Syrian civil war
Anti-ISIL factions in Syria
Free Syrian Army
Military units and formations established in 2015
Military units and formations disestablished in 2018
Turkish supported militant groups of the Syrian civil war