Jarba annuls decision to sack Syria’s rebel military command

The leader of Syria’s main opposition abroad Ahmed al-Jarba annulled on Friday a decision to dismantle the rebel Supreme Military Council over graft allegations.

Jarba, who is the head of the Western-backed Syrian National Coalition (SNC), rebuked the decision by the interim opposition government as it “falls outside its authority and its government head,” he said in a statement published by Syrian activists on Friday.

On Thursday, the chief of the opposition government Ahmad Tohme decided to disband the Supreme Military Council of the rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA) and “refer its members to the government’s financial and administration committee for investigation.”

Tohme’s decision came amid widespread reports of corruption within the ranks of the FSA, which is backed by Western and Arab governments in its battle to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.

Jarba added that “the decision violates article 31 of [Syrian National] coalition’s foundation which highlights the followership of the higher military leadership to the coalition.”

Instead he said the issue will be discussed in the first SNC meeting to take the appropriate measures.

Meanwhile, Jarba met with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry during the latter’s trip to Saudi Arabia on Friday.
In May, Jarba travelled to Washington to plead for more arms from the U.S. administration.

Islamist militants, who have captured a swathe of northern Iraq, have also seized territory in neighboring Syria where they are fighting both the moderate opposition and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

On Friday, Kerry signaled that Washington hopes to recruit moderate Syrian opposition fighters to fight against extremist militants group – the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) - in neighboring Iraq.