The Syrian Revolutionaries Front ( ar, جبهة ثوار سوريا, ''Jabhat Thowar Suriya'', SRF, also translated Syrian Rebel Front
[) is an alliance of 14 relatively moderate religious and some secular armed groups fighting under the banner of the ]Free Syrian Army
The Free Syrian Army (FSA) ( ar, الجيش السوري الحر, al-jaysh as-Sūrī al-ḥur) is a loose faction in the Syrian Civil War founded on 29 July 2011 by officers of the Syrian Armed Forces with the goal of bringing down the governm ...
, formed in December 2013, thus according to ''Arutz Sheva
''Arutz Sheva'' ( he, ערוץ 7, lit=''Channel 7''), also known in English as ''Israel National News'', is an Israeli media network identifying with religious Zionism. It offers online news articles in Hebrew, English, and Russian as well as l ...
'' further sidelining the FSA and its leadership Supreme Military Council. It was established as a response to the merger of Islamist Syrian rebels into the Islamic Front.[
]
History
Northern branch
In December 2013, following initial clashes, the Islamic Front and the Syrian Revolutionaries Front agreed to reconcile. The coalition was spearheaded by Jamal Maarouf
Jamal Maarouf (Arabic: جمال معروف) is a Syrian rebel leader who was one of the most powerful rebel leaders in northern Syria during the earlier stages of the Syrian Civil War. He is the military chief of the Syria Revolutionaries Front a ...
, head of the Syrian Martyrs' Brigades, largest member group of the SRF based in Jabal Zawiya
Mount Zāwiya ( ar, جبل الزاوية, Jabal az-Zāwiyah) or Mount Rīḥā ( ar, جبل ريحا, Jabal Rīḥā) (also in medieval times: Banī-ʻUlaym Mountain ( ar, جبل بني عليم, Jabal Banī-ʻUlaym) is a highland region in Idli ...
, Idlib Governorate
Idlib Governorate ( ar, مُحافظة ادلب / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Idlib'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in northwestern Syria, bordering Turkey's Hatay province to the north, Aleppo Governorate to the east, Hama ...
. The group has supported the Geneva II Middle East peace conference
The Geneva II Conference on Syria (also called Geneva II Middle East peace conference or simply Geneva IIUN News Center. ''Preparations for upcoming Syria peace conference 'on track,’ says UN chief''. "The goal of the so-called "Geneva II" ...
that is aimed at resolving the Syrian civil war.[ The group received financial support from ]Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
, while the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
has reportedly given the group only non-lethal aid like food, medicine and blankets, in part due to concerns over its involvement in smuggling
Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations.
There are various ...
and extortion
Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...
.[
100 members of the SRF's Wolves of al-Ghab Brigade were killed in clashes 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 ...
near Jisr al-Shughur
Jisr ash-Shughūr ( ar, جِسْرُ ٱلشُّغُورِ, jisr aš-šuġūr, , also rendered as ''Jisser ash-Shughour'' and other spellings), known in antiquity as Seleucobelus ( el, Σελευκόβηλος, translit=Seleukóbēlos), is a city i ...
on 16 July 2014.
In late October 2014 clashes erupted again between the SRF and al-Nusra in the Jabal al-Zawiya region of Idlib, over the following days, dozens of SRF fighters defected to Nusra and the group lost control of numerous villages as they withdrew their forces from the region. Maarouf and some of his followers relocated to Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
, however around half of his men in the region remained behind and accepted the change of control rather than fight.
On 5 May 2015, some of the former members of the Hazzm Movement
The Hazzm Movement ( ar, حركة حزم, ''Ḥarakat Ḥazzm'', meaning ''Movement of Steadfastness'') was an alliance of Syrian rebel groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army in northwestern Syria that existed from 25 January 2014 until 1 Mar ...
, the Syria Revolutionaries Front based in the north, Jabhat al-Akrad
The Kurdish Front ( ar, جبهة الأكراد, transliterated: Jabhat al-Akrad; ku, Eniya Kurdan, former full name: ''Liwa' Jabhat al-'Akrad l-Nusra Shaʿbnā al-Sūrī'', "Brigade of the Kurdish Front to Support Our Syrian People") is a pre ...
, the Dawn of Freedom Brigades
The Dawn of Freedom Brigades ( ar-at, تجمع ألوية فجر الحرية, Tajamu Alwiya Fajr al-Hurriya) was a Free Syrian Army-affiliated Syrian rebel alliance which participated in the Syrian Civil War. It coordinated with the joint operat ...
and smaller FSA groups formed the Army of Revolutionaries. Many of their northern members also dissolved into the Levant Front.
During the Turkish military intervention in Syria which started in late August 2016, some members of the Syrian Revolutionaries Front and the Hazm Movement in exile from Turkey crossed into Syria through Jarabulus
Jarabulus ( ar, جَرَابُلُس / ALA-LC: ''Jarābulus'', Aleppo dialect: ''Jrāblos''; tr, Cerablus) is a Syrian city administratively belonging to Aleppo Governorate, under the de-facto control of the Syrian Opposition. Jarabulus lies on ...
.
Northern groups (now defunct)
* Syrian Martyrs' Brigades[
* Idlib Military Council (dissolved in June 2014)
* ]Idlib Martyrs' Brigade
The Idlib Martyrs' Brigade ( ar, لواء شهداء إدلب, ''Liwa Shuhada Idlib'') was an armed rebel group that fought against the Syrian government in the Idlib Governorate of Syria. It first operated under the name Syrian Liberation Army ...
* Ansar Brigades
* Wolves of al-Ghab Brigade
* Free North Brigade
* Northern Farouq Battalions
* Mountain Hawks Brigade
The Mountain Hawks Brigade ( ar-at, لواء صقور الجبل, Liwa’ Suqour al-Jabal), known as the Hawks of Mount Zawiya Brigade ( ar, لواء صقور جبل الزاويه, Liwa' Suqour Jabal al-Zawiya) between 2012 and 2015 and the Moun ...
(left to join the 5th Corps in September 2014)
* Hama Farouq Battalions
* Khalid ibn al-Walid Brigade (left in July 2014)
* Union of Free Zawiya Brigades (left in May 2014 to join the Syrian Salvation Front)
** Al-Qaqaa Brigade
* 9th Special Forces Division of Aleppo (left in January 2014 to join the Hazzm Movement
The Hazzm Movement ( ar, حركة حزم, ''Ḥarakat Ḥazzm'', meaning ''Movement of Steadfastness'') was an alliance of Syrian rebel groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army in northwestern Syria that existed from 25 January 2014 until 1 Mar ...
)
* Syrian Kurdish Revolutionary Council (Komala) (joined in April 2014, left in October 2014)
Southern branch
The group is currently only active in southern Syria, as a member of a Southern Front group, and previously part of the First Army of the Southern Front. On 2 March 2016, a car bomb
A car bomb, bus bomb, lorry bomb, or truck bomb, also known as a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), is an improvised explosive device designed to be detonated in an automobile or other vehicles.
Car bombs can be roughly divided ...
explosion targeted the SRF headquarters in Quneitra
Quneitra (also Al Qunaytirah, Qunaitira, or Kuneitra; ar, ٱلْقُنَيْطِرَة or ٱلْقُنَيطْرَة, ''al-Qunayṭrah'' or ''al-Qunayṭirah'' ) is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in sout ...
and killed its commander 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 ...
Abu Hamza al-Naimi and 4 other field commanders.[ Some time in 2016, the SRF's branch in ]Jubata al-Khashab
Jubata al-Khashab ( ar, جباتا الخشب) is a town in southern Syria, administratively part of the Quneitra Governorate (Golan Heights), in the portion of the province under the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force Zone. According t ...
split into 3 factions. The local SRF commander in the area also defected to the Golan Regiment
The Golan Regiment (Arabic: فوج الجولان, Fouj al-Joulan) is a Syrian militia based in Khan Arnabah that is part of the National Defence Forces (NDF). Though primarily active in the Golan Heights, the unit has been deployed in various wa ...
.
On 6 April 2017, clashes erupted between the SRF and Jabhat Ansar al-Islam
Jabhat Ansar al-Islam ( ar, جبهة أنصار الإسلام; ''Supporters of Islam Front''), originally formed as Tajamu' Ansar al-Islam ( ar, تجمع أنصار الإسلام; ''Assembly of the Supporters of Islam'') in August 2012, is an ...
in the northern Quneitra
Quneitra (also Al Qunaytirah, Qunaitira, or Kuneitra; ar, ٱلْقُنَيْطِرَة or ٱلْقُنَيطْرَة, ''al-Qunayṭrah'' or ''al-Qunayṭirah'' ) is the largely destroyed and abandoned capital of the Quneitra Governorate in sout ...
countryside, which resulted in 7 rebels being killed. Government forces shelled the area on the same day, which resulted in a ceasefire between the two rebel groups.
On 31 July 2017, 5 SRF groups in Daraa and Quneitra merged into the 1st Infantry Division and established a unified command structure for the SRF.[
]
Southern groups
* 1st Infantry Division
** 1st Infantry Gathering
** Gathering of Righteousness
*** Brigade of Two Holy Mosques
** Union of the Unity of the Nation
** Saladin Brigades
** Tank Brigade
*63rd Southern Division[
**Dawn of the Levant Union
**Abu Dujana Brigades
**Jafar al-Tayyar Brigade
**Lions of Mercy Brigade
**Free Yarmouk Brigade
**Hazm Brigade
**Mercy Brigade
**Southern Martyrs Brigade
**Martyr Abdul Rahim Samour Brigade
**Special Tasks Brigade
*Coming Victory Brigade
*7th Division
*Riyad al-Salehin Battalions of Damascus
*Special Assignments Regiment of Damascus
**Armenian Battalion
*Helpers Brigades
*Southern Swords Division]
*Martyr Captain Abu Hamza al-Naimi Union
=Former
=
* Omari Brigades
The Omari Brigades was a Syrian rebel group formed in the Lajat region in Daraa Governorate as the first FSA group formed in the province. It received TOW missiles and has been supplied and funded by Saudi Arabia. It is part of the Alliance of S ...
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
{{2011 Syrian uprising
Anti-government factions of the Syrian civil war
Organizations established in 2013
2013 establishments in Syria