Militants linked to al Qaeda in Syria killed a senior figure in the Western- and Arab-backed Free Syrian army on Thursday, an FSA source said, signaling a widening rift between Islamists and more moderate elements in the armed Syrian opposition.
Kamal Hamami, a member of the Free Syrian Army’s Supreme Military Council, known by his nom de guerre Abu Bassel al-Ladkani, was meeting with members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the port city of Latakia when they killed him, Qassem Saadeddine, a Free Syrian Army spokesman, told Reuters.
“The Islamic State phoned me saying that they killed Abu Bassel and that they will kill all of the Supreme Military Council,” Saadeddine said from Syria.
“He met them to discuss battle plans,” Saadeddine added.
The Free Syrian Army has been trying to build a network of logistics and reinforce its presence across Syria as the U.S. administration pledged to send weapons to the group after it concluded that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces had used chemical weapons against rebel fighters.
U.S. congressional committees are holding up the plan because of fears that such deliveries will not be decisive and the arms might end up in the hands of Islamist militants, security sources have said.
While Free Syrian Army units sometimes fight alongside Islamist militant groups such as the Islamist State, rivalries have increased and al-Qaeda-linked groups have been blamed for several assassinations of commanders of moderate rebel units.
-
Why the U.S. Congress is reluctant on Syria
If you have been wondering where are the weapons and ammunition shipments that U.S. President Barack Obama had promised Syria’s rebels last ... Middle East -
Syria opposition denies Russian chemical attack allegation
The opposition Syrian National Coalition on Wednesday denied a Russian charge that rebel fighters fired a projectile laden with the nerve agent sarin ... Middle East -
U.N. calls on Lebanon’s Hezbollah to stop involvement in Syria
The U.N. Security Council called on Lebanese Hezbollah militants on Wednesday to end any involvement in the conflict in neighboring Syria, while ... Middle East -
Events in Egypt may influence, won’t define Syria war
The fall of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt has put a new spring in the step of Bashar al-Assad, who sees it as a sign that Islamists - including ... Perspective -
Lebanon vows to keep borders open to Syria refugees
Lebanon vowed Wednesday to keep its borders open to Syrian refugees as the U.N. Security Council called for “unprecedented” international ... Middle East