Free Syrian Army
Encyclopedia
The Free Syrian Army is the main opposition army group in Syria
. It is composed of defected Syrian Armed Forces personnel, who have been active during the 2011 Syrian uprising
. The formation of the opposition army group was announced on 29 July 2011 in a web video released by a group of uniformed defectors from the Syrian military, who called upon members of the army to defect and join them. The leader of the men, who identified himself as Colonel Riyad al-Asad
, announced that the FSA would work with demonstrators to bring down the system and declared that all security forces attacking civilians are justified targets. Riyad al-Asad emphasised that the Free Syrian Army has no political goals except the liberation of Syria from Bashar Assad's regime.
The Free Syrian Army has also stated that the conflict is not sectarian, and that they have in their ranks Alawis who oppose the regime, and that there will be no reprisals when the regime falls. On 23 September 2011, the Free Syrian Army merged with the Free Officers Movement and became the main opposition army group. As of October there were estimates of 40,000 defectors from the armed forces.
According to their leader Colonel al-Asad, as of November 2011, the FSA gained 100 to 300 members every time it mounted an attack. The FSA is operating throughout Syria, both in urban areas and in the countryside. Forces are active in the northwest (Idlib, Aleppo), the central region (Homs, Hama, and Rastan), the coast around Latakia, the south (Deraa and Houran), the east (Dayr al-Zawr, Abu Kamal), and the Damascus area. The largest concentration of these forces appears to be in the central region (Homs, Hama, and surrounding areas), with nine or more battalions active there.
Asad continued by calling on the officers and men of the Syrian army to "defect from the army, stop pointing their rifles at their people's chests, join the free army, and form a national army that can protect the revolution and all sections of the Syrian people with all their sects." He continued that the Syrian army "[represents] gangs that protect the regime" and declared, "as of now, the security forces that kill civilians and besiege cities will be treated as legitimate targets. We will target them in all parts of the Syrian territories without exception.
As no confirmed evidence of an organized Free Syrian Army beyond video statements was produced in the beginning, its existence was questioned by some sources. However in late August, a top member of the organization, colonel Hussein Harmoush, was detained during a special operation by Syrian forces in Idlib and confessed on state television that he was a member of the opposition army and that while in the Syrian army he was not forced to shoot on protesters. Since August, the Free Syrian Army has also made a number of interviews with the international media from both locations on the Syrian-Turkish border and inside Syria.
According to its leader, the Free Syrian Army "aims to be the military wing of the Syrian peoples opposition to the regime". He also asked that the international community help arm the opposition army and impose a no fly zone and a naval blockade of Syria
On 16 November, the FSA released a statement which announced that a temporary military council had been formed, in an effort to weaken the Pro Assad forces. On 17 November, the FSA announced the formation of the Sham Falcons battalion, pledging to Bashar al-Assad that "you will find us everywhere at all times, and you will see that which you do not expect, until we re-establish the rights and freedom of our people."
in the countryside and cities, similar to those described in Guevara’s book Guerrilla Warfare
. The FSA claims it actively engages and ambushes security forces and the state’s shabiha militia, but seldom confronts other regular army soldiers for fear of alienating them. Most of their attacks have been on buses bringing in security reinforcements, often by planting bombs or carrying out hit-and-run attacks.
In order to encourage defections, the Free Syrian Army has been ambushing patrols and shooting their commanders and then convincing the rank and file to switch sides. Ninety percent of the Syrian Army soldiers are Sunni, while the commanders are mostly from Bashar Assad’s
Alawi sect. The FSA battalions have also acted as defense forces in neighborhoods opposed to the government, guarding streets while protests take place and attacking the militias, known as shabiha, which are an integral part of the government's efforts to suppress dissent.
In Deir ez-Zor, Al-Rastan and Abu Kamal
the Free Syrian Army, however, engaged in street battles that raged for days with no particular side gaining the advantage. Recently, air support was used against them in Hama
, Homs
, Al-Rastan, Deir ez-Zor and Deraa.
In late September, Syrian government forces, backed by tanks and helicopters, led a major offensive on the city of Al-Rastan, which had been under opposition control for the past couple weeks. There were reports of large numbers of defections in the city, and the Free Syrian Army claimed it had destroyed 17 pro-Assad armoured vehicles during clashes in Rastan, using RPGs and booby traps. The Al-Harmoush battalion also claimed to have killed 80 loyalist soldiers in fighting. A defected officer in the Syrian opposition claimed that over a hundred officers had defected as well as thousands of conscripts, although many had gone into hiding or home to their families, rather than fighting the loyalist forces. The fighting between the government forces and the Free Syrian Army was the longest and most intense action so far. After a week of fighting, the FSA was forced to retreat from Rastan. To avoid government forces, the leader of the FSA, Col. Riyad Asad, retreated to the Turkish
side of Syrian-Turkish border.
in the south of Syria that resulted in the death of two rebel and six loyalist soldiers, according to the London based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Clashes were also reported in Banish with a total of 14 fatalities for both affected towns, including rebels, loyalists and civilians. A few days later on 17 October, five government troops were killed in the town of Qusair, near the border with Lebanon, and 17 people were reported wounded in battles with defectors in the town of Hass
, although it was unclear if the wounded included civilians. According to the London based organization, an estimated 11 government soldiers were killed that day, four of which were killed in a bombing. It was not clear if the defectors linked to these incidents were connected to the Free Syrian Army.
On 20 October, the opposition claimed that clashes occurred between loyalists and defectors in Burhaniya near Homs, leading to the death of several soldiers and the destruction of two military vehicles.
Clashes occurred in the north western town Maarat al-Numaan on 25 October between loyalists and defected soldiers at a roadblock on the edge of the town. The defectors launched an assault on the government held roadblock in retaliation against a raid on their positions the previous night.
On 26 October, the opposition claimed that nine soldiers were killed by a rocket-propelled grenade when it hit their bus in the village of Hamrat, near Hama. The gunmen who attacked the bus are believed to be defected soldiers.
Oppositions claimed that 17 pro Assad soldiers were killed in Homs on 29 October during fighting with suspected army deserters, including a defected senior official who was aiding the rebel soldiers. Two armoured personnel carriers were disabled in the fighting. Later that number would say to be 20 Syrian soldiers were killed and 53 wounded in clashes with presumed army deserters, according to Agence France Presse. In a separate incident, 10 security agents and a deserter were killed in a bus ambush near the Turkish border, activists said, AFP reports. The Observatory said the bus was transporting security agents between the villages of Al-Habit and Kafrnabuda in Idlib province when it was ambushed "by armed men, probably deserters".
On the 5 November at least nine people died in clashes between soldiers, protesters and defectors and four Shabeeha were killed in Idlib, reportedly by army deserters. On the same day, the state-news agency SANA
reported the deaths of 13 soldiers and policemen as a result of clashes with armed groups. According to SANA, four policemen were also wounded in clashes with an armed group in Kanaker in the Damascus countryside, while one of the armed individuals died. Additionally two explosive devices were also allegedly dismantled.
More army defections were reported in Damascus on 10 November, three out of at least nine defectors were shot dead by loyalist gunmen after abandoning their posts. The same day, clashes reportedly resulted in the death of a fifteen year old boy in Khan Sheikhoun, when he was caught in crossfire between Assad loyalists and the free army. Also on the 10 November "at least four soldiers in the regular army were killed at dawn in an attack, headed by armed men - probably deserters - on a military checkpoint in Has region, near Maaret al-Numan town" according to the Syrian Observatory for Human rights. However, the number has also been put at five soldiers. A checkpoint in Maarat al-Numaan three kilometers south of Homs also came under attack by defectors, resulting in an increase in tank deployment by Syrian security forces in the city.
On 11 November, Reuters
reported that 26 soldiers were killed, while Syrian state media reported the lower figure of 20 soldiers killed at this time. For November, there have been conflicting reports of the number of Syrian soldiers injured and killed. For the month up until 13 November, the Local Coordination Committees have reported about 20 deaths, the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights has reported more than 100 deaths, and the Syrian state media SANA has reported 71 deaths.
On the 14 November, 34 soldiers and 12 defectors were killed in clashes in an ambush by the Free Syrian Army in Deraa. The death toll as a result of the fighting also included 23 civilians.
On the 15 November, eight soldiers and security forces troops were killed by an assault on a checkpoint in Hama province, according to activists.
On the 16 November, an air force intelligence complex on the edges of Damascus was attacked. According to the Free Syrian Army, they did so with machine guns and rockets, leading to the death of at least six soldiers with twenty others wounded. A western diplomat said the assault was "hugely symbolic and tactically new".
The Free Syrian Army launched an assault against the Baath party youth headquarters in Idlib the next day with RPG's and small arms.
The state news agency SANA reported the deaths of three Syrian troops as a result of a bomb blast, with an officer also critically wounded and two law-enforcement agents injured.
Three members of the security forces were reportedly killed on the 18th/19th November by the Free Syrian Army. Multiple attacks on the 19th by "armed terrorists" were also reported by the state news agency SANA. They allege that ten "wanted terrorists" were captured in Maarat al-Numan.
According to Reuters, two rocket propelled grenades hit a Baath party building in Damascus on the 20th. This if true is highly significant; it is the first attack of this kind within the capital itself and would lend weight to the Free Syrian Army's claim that it can strike anywhere in Syria. According to Reuters, a witness said: "Security police blocked off the square where the Baath's Damascus branch is located. But I saw smoke rising from the building and fire trucks around it." The building was reportedly mostly empty in the attack which took place before dawn and was seemingly a message to the regime. However, an AFP reporter went to the area and saw no signs of the claimed attack while residents said that there had been no explosions. Colonel Asad himself denied that the Free Syrian Army was responsible for the attack. It is therefore likely that it was a provocation by the Assad regime.
On the 22nd of November, the Free Syrian Army claimed responsibility for killing eight members of the security forces.
On Tuesday 23rd November, five defected soldiers were killed; four in a farm near Deraa where they were hiding and one near the Lebanese border, according to Reuters. If there was a confrontation between the soldiers and government troops is unclear. Any government troop casualties as a result of these clashes are also unknown.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, on the 24th November soldiers and Shabiha with armoured vehicles allegedly started operations in farmland west of Rastan to hunt down defectors. 24 people died as a result (if they were soldiers, defectors or civilians is not made clear). At least fifty tanks and other armed vehicles opened fire with 50 cal. machine guns and anti aircraft weapons on positons held by the Free Syrian Army on Rastan's outskirts. Deaths were also reported in Darr'a and Homs
Homs Province Ambush
- Six elite piots, four technical officers and three other personnel were killed in Homs in an ambush on the 24th November. The Syrian government vowed to "cut every evil hand" of the attackers as a result. The Free Syrian army claimed responsibilty for the attack on the air base staff.
At least 10 troops and security service agents were killed in clashes with mutinous soldiers in the east of Syria, a human rights group said on Saturday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the deaths occurred late Friday in Deir Ezzor while early Saturday a civilian was also killed in the eastern city. Several defectors were also killed or wounded.
At least 8 soldiers were killed and 40 more wounded when The Free Syrian Army attacked them in Idlib, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on 26 November."A group of deserters attacked a squad of soldiers and security agents in a convoy of seven vehicles, including three all-terrain vehicles, on the road from Ghadka to Maaret Numan,” the Britain-based watchdog said. “Eight were killed and at least 40 more were wounded. The deserters were able to withdraw without suffering any casualties,” it added. The FSA claimed to be behind the attack.
Syrian human rights activists claimed that the Free Syrian Army had killed three loyalist soldiers and captured two others on 29 November, athough did not specify where.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, seven soldiers were killed on the 30th November in fighting in the town of Dael after security forces moved on the town in force. The fighting went on from the early morning to the late afternoon. "Two security force vehicles were blown up. Seven (troops) were killed," said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the observatory. An activist from the town, in the province of Deraa, said some 30 busloads of security men stormed Dael and two of the buses were blown up in fighting "between security forces and defectors," the Observatory reported. One of the destroyed buses was allegedly empty.
, close to the Syrian border, and its field command from inside Syria. The FSA has declared the following command structure. Colonel
Riyad al-Asad
is the Commander-in-Chief, Colonel Malik Kurdi is his deputy, and Colonel Ahmed Hijazi is the Chief of Staff of the Free Syrian Army.
. The battalions are:
announced in November 2011 that it had been in talks with the Syrian National Council and was considering supplying weapons and volunteer fighters of the National Liberation Army to the Free Syrian Army, and that international intervention may only be weeks away. According to people with links to the National Council, the Libyans were offering money, weapons and training forces loyal to the Syrian National Council.
On 29 November, it was reported that at least 600 fighters from Libya had been dispatched to support the Free Syrian Army and had entered Syria through Turkey.
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
. It is composed of defected Syrian Armed Forces personnel, who have been active during the 2011 Syrian uprising
2011 Syrian uprising
The 2011 Syrian uprising is an ongoing internal conflict occurring in Syria. Protests started on 26 January 2011, and escalated into an uprising by 15 March 2011...
. The formation of the opposition army group was announced on 29 July 2011 in a web video released by a group of uniformed defectors from the Syrian military, who called upon members of the army to defect and join them. The leader of the men, who identified himself as Colonel Riyad al-Asad
Riyad al-Asad
Riyad Mousa al-Asad is the commander of the Free Syrian Army. He is a former Colonel in the Syrian Air Force who defected in July 2011. John Simpson who tracking down and interviewed Col.Al-Asad. He said he is based in a refugee camp at Apaydin, 9 miles from the town of Antakya and very close to...
, announced that the FSA would work with demonstrators to bring down the system and declared that all security forces attacking civilians are justified targets. Riyad al-Asad emphasised that the Free Syrian Army has no political goals except the liberation of Syria from Bashar Assad's regime.
The Free Syrian Army has also stated that the conflict is not sectarian, and that they have in their ranks Alawis who oppose the regime, and that there will be no reprisals when the regime falls. On 23 September 2011, the Free Syrian Army merged with the Free Officers Movement and became the main opposition army group. As of October there were estimates of 40,000 defectors from the armed forces.
According to their leader Colonel al-Asad, as of November 2011, the FSA gained 100 to 300 members every time it mounted an attack. The FSA is operating throughout Syria, both in urban areas and in the countryside. Forces are active in the northwest (Idlib, Aleppo), the central region (Homs, Hama, and Rastan), the coast around Latakia, the south (Deraa and Houran), the east (Dayr al-Zawr, Abu Kamal), and the Damascus area. The largest concentration of these forces appears to be in the central region (Homs, Hama, and surrounding areas), with nine or more battalions active there.
Declaration of formation
In the Free Syrian Army’s first statement, Riyad al-Asad explained that the opposition army’s formation resulted “from our nationalistic duty, our loyalty to the people, our sense of the current need for conclusive decisions to stop the regime’s massacres that cannot be tolerated any longer, and resulting from the army’s responsibility to protect the unarmed free people.” And he proceeded to “announce the formation of the free Syrian army to work hand in hand with the people to achieve freedom and dignity, bring the regime down, protect the revolution and the country’s resources, and stand in the face of the irresponsible military machine that protects the regime.”Asad continued by calling on the officers and men of the Syrian army to "defect from the army, stop pointing their rifles at their people's chests, join the free army, and form a national army that can protect the revolution and all sections of the Syrian people with all their sects." He continued that the Syrian army "[represents] gangs that protect the regime" and declared, "as of now, the security forces that kill civilians and besiege cities will be treated as legitimate targets. We will target them in all parts of the Syrian territories without exception.
As no confirmed evidence of an organized Free Syrian Army beyond video statements was produced in the beginning, its existence was questioned by some sources. However in late August, a top member of the organization, colonel Hussein Harmoush, was detained during a special operation by Syrian forces in Idlib and confessed on state television that he was a member of the opposition army and that while in the Syrian army he was not forced to shoot on protesters. Since August, the Free Syrian Army has also made a number of interviews with the international media from both locations on the Syrian-Turkish border and inside Syria.
According to its leader, the Free Syrian Army "aims to be the military wing of the Syrian peoples opposition to the regime". He also asked that the international community help arm the opposition army and impose a no fly zone and a naval blockade of Syria
On 16 November, the FSA released a statement which announced that a temporary military council had been formed, in an effort to weaken the Pro Assad forces. On 17 November, the FSA announced the formation of the Sham Falcons battalion, pledging to Bashar al-Assad that "you will find us everywhere at all times, and you will see that which you do not expect, until we re-establish the rights and freedom of our people."
Military tactics
The soldiers on desertion have to abandon their armoured vehicles and, carrying only light weapons, hide in cities and suburbs. As the Syrian army is highly organised and well-armed, the Free Syrian Army has adopted guerrilla-style tacticsGuerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
in the countryside and cities, similar to those described in Guevara’s book Guerrilla Warfare
Guerrilla Warfare (book)
Guerrilla Warfare is a book by Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara that was written right after the Cuban Revolution and published in 1961. It soon became the guidebook for thousands of insurgents in various countries around the world....
. The FSA claims it actively engages and ambushes security forces and the state’s shabiha militia, but seldom confronts other regular army soldiers for fear of alienating them. Most of their attacks have been on buses bringing in security reinforcements, often by planting bombs or carrying out hit-and-run attacks.
In order to encourage defections, the Free Syrian Army has been ambushing patrols and shooting their commanders and then convincing the rank and file to switch sides. Ninety percent of the Syrian Army soldiers are Sunni, while the commanders are mostly from Bashar Assad’s
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000. Al-Assad was elected in 2000, re-elected in 2007, unopposed each time.- Early Life :...
Alawi sect. The FSA battalions have also acted as defense forces in neighborhoods opposed to the government, guarding streets while protests take place and attacking the militias, known as shabiha, which are an integral part of the government's efforts to suppress dissent.
In Deir ez-Zor, Al-Rastan and Abu Kamal
Abu Kamal
Al-Bukamal or Al-Bu-Kamal , also referred to as Abu Kamal, is a city in eastern Syria on the Euphrates River near the border with Iraq...
the Free Syrian Army, however, engaged in street battles that raged for days with no particular side gaining the advantage. Recently, air support was used against them in Hama
Hama
Hama is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria north of Damascus. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. Hama is the fourth-largest city in Syria—behind Aleppo, Damascus, and Homs—with a population of 696,863...
, Homs
Homs
Homs , previously known as Emesa , is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is above sea level and is located north of Damascus...
, Al-Rastan, Deir ez-Zor and Deraa.
September
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
side of Syrian-Turkish border.
October
By mid October, clashes between loyalist and defected army units were being reported fairly regularly. On 13 October, clashes were reported in the town of HarraHarra
Harra is a municipality in the district Saale-Orla-Kreis, in Thuringia, Germany....
in the south of Syria that resulted in the death of two rebel and six loyalist soldiers, according to the London based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Clashes were also reported in Banish with a total of 14 fatalities for both affected towns, including rebels, loyalists and civilians. A few days later on 17 October, five government troops were killed in the town of Qusair, near the border with Lebanon, and 17 people were reported wounded in battles with defectors in the town of Hass
Hass
Hass has multiple meanings:People:* Robert Hass, American poet from California* Robert Bernard Hass, American literary critic, author, and poet from Pennsylvania* Hieronymus Albrecht Hass, German harpsichord maker; father of J. A. Hass, below...
, although it was unclear if the wounded included civilians. According to the London based organization, an estimated 11 government soldiers were killed that day, four of which were killed in a bombing. It was not clear if the defectors linked to these incidents were connected to the Free Syrian Army.
On 20 October, the opposition claimed that clashes occurred between loyalists and defectors in Burhaniya near Homs, leading to the death of several soldiers and the destruction of two military vehicles.
Clashes occurred in the north western town Maarat al-Numaan on 25 October between loyalists and defected soldiers at a roadblock on the edge of the town. The defectors launched an assault on the government held roadblock in retaliation against a raid on their positions the previous night.
On 26 October, the opposition claimed that nine soldiers were killed by a rocket-propelled grenade when it hit their bus in the village of Hamrat, near Hama. The gunmen who attacked the bus are believed to be defected soldiers.
Oppositions claimed that 17 pro Assad soldiers were killed in Homs on 29 October during fighting with suspected army deserters, including a defected senior official who was aiding the rebel soldiers. Two armoured personnel carriers were disabled in the fighting. Later that number would say to be 20 Syrian soldiers were killed and 53 wounded in clashes with presumed army deserters, according to Agence France Presse. In a separate incident, 10 security agents and a deserter were killed in a bus ambush near the Turkish border, activists said, AFP reports. The Observatory said the bus was transporting security agents between the villages of Al-Habit and Kafrnabuda in Idlib province when it was ambushed "by armed men, probably deserters".
November
On the 1 November, "dozens" of armoured vehicles allegedly converged on a village in the Kafroma in Idlib, as defected soldiers (it is unknown if they are associated with the Free Syrian Army) apparently killed an unknown number of Syrian soldiers.On the 5 November at least nine people died in clashes between soldiers, protesters and defectors and four Shabeeha were killed in Idlib, reportedly by army deserters. On the same day, the state-news agency SANA
Syrian Arab News Agency
The Syrian Arab News Agency is a news agency in Syria. It is a state media organisation linked to the Ministry of Information. It was established in 1965....
reported the deaths of 13 soldiers and policemen as a result of clashes with armed groups. According to SANA, four policemen were also wounded in clashes with an armed group in Kanaker in the Damascus countryside, while one of the armed individuals died. Additionally two explosive devices were also allegedly dismantled.
More army defections were reported in Damascus on 10 November, three out of at least nine defectors were shot dead by loyalist gunmen after abandoning their posts. The same day, clashes reportedly resulted in the death of a fifteen year old boy in Khan Sheikhoun, when he was caught in crossfire between Assad loyalists and the free army. Also on the 10 November "at least four soldiers in the regular army were killed at dawn in an attack, headed by armed men - probably deserters - on a military checkpoint in Has region, near Maaret al-Numan town" according to the Syrian Observatory for Human rights. However, the number has also been put at five soldiers. A checkpoint in Maarat al-Numaan three kilometers south of Homs also came under attack by defectors, resulting in an increase in tank deployment by Syrian security forces in the city.
On 11 November, Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
reported that 26 soldiers were killed, while Syrian state media reported the lower figure of 20 soldiers killed at this time. For November, there have been conflicting reports of the number of Syrian soldiers injured and killed. For the month up until 13 November, the Local Coordination Committees have reported about 20 deaths, the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights has reported more than 100 deaths, and the Syrian state media SANA has reported 71 deaths.
On the 14 November, 34 soldiers and 12 defectors were killed in clashes in an ambush by the Free Syrian Army in Deraa. The death toll as a result of the fighting also included 23 civilians.
On the 15 November, eight soldiers and security forces troops were killed by an assault on a checkpoint in Hama province, according to activists.
On the 16 November, an air force intelligence complex on the edges of Damascus was attacked. According to the Free Syrian Army, they did so with machine guns and rockets, leading to the death of at least six soldiers with twenty others wounded. A western diplomat said the assault was "hugely symbolic and tactically new".
The Free Syrian Army launched an assault against the Baath party youth headquarters in Idlib the next day with RPG's and small arms.
The state news agency SANA reported the deaths of three Syrian troops as a result of a bomb blast, with an officer also critically wounded and two law-enforcement agents injured.
Three members of the security forces were reportedly killed on the 18th/19th November by the Free Syrian Army. Multiple attacks on the 19th by "armed terrorists" were also reported by the state news agency SANA. They allege that ten "wanted terrorists" were captured in Maarat al-Numan.
According to Reuters, two rocket propelled grenades hit a Baath party building in Damascus on the 20th. This if true is highly significant; it is the first attack of this kind within the capital itself and would lend weight to the Free Syrian Army's claim that it can strike anywhere in Syria. According to Reuters, a witness said: "Security police blocked off the square where the Baath's Damascus branch is located. But I saw smoke rising from the building and fire trucks around it." The building was reportedly mostly empty in the attack which took place before dawn and was seemingly a message to the regime. However, an AFP reporter went to the area and saw no signs of the claimed attack while residents said that there had been no explosions. Colonel Asad himself denied that the Free Syrian Army was responsible for the attack. It is therefore likely that it was a provocation by the Assad regime.
On the 22nd of November, the Free Syrian Army claimed responsibility for killing eight members of the security forces.
On Tuesday 23rd November, five defected soldiers were killed; four in a farm near Deraa where they were hiding and one near the Lebanese border, according to Reuters. If there was a confrontation between the soldiers and government troops is unclear. Any government troop casualties as a result of these clashes are also unknown.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, on the 24th November soldiers and Shabiha with armoured vehicles allegedly started operations in farmland west of Rastan to hunt down defectors. 24 people died as a result (if they were soldiers, defectors or civilians is not made clear). At least fifty tanks and other armed vehicles opened fire with 50 cal. machine guns and anti aircraft weapons on positons held by the Free Syrian Army on Rastan's outskirts. Deaths were also reported in Darr'a and Homs
Homs Province Ambush
Homs Province Ambush
The Homs Province Ambush was an armed attack on a Syrian air force base in the Homs Province, between Homs and Palmyra by the Free Syrian Army which killed 10 military personel.-The attack:...
- Six elite piots, four technical officers and three other personnel were killed in Homs in an ambush on the 24th November. The Syrian government vowed to "cut every evil hand" of the attackers as a result. The Free Syrian army claimed responsibilty for the attack on the air base staff.
At least 10 troops and security service agents were killed in clashes with mutinous soldiers in the east of Syria, a human rights group said on Saturday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the deaths occurred late Friday in Deir Ezzor while early Saturday a civilian was also killed in the eastern city. Several defectors were also killed or wounded.
At least 8 soldiers were killed and 40 more wounded when The Free Syrian Army attacked them in Idlib, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on 26 November."A group of deserters attacked a squad of soldiers and security agents in a convoy of seven vehicles, including three all-terrain vehicles, on the road from Ghadka to Maaret Numan,” the Britain-based watchdog said. “Eight were killed and at least 40 more were wounded. The deserters were able to withdraw without suffering any casualties,” it added. The FSA claimed to be behind the attack.
Syrian human rights activists claimed that the Free Syrian Army had killed three loyalist soldiers and captured two others on 29 November, athough did not specify where.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, seven soldiers were killed on the 30th November in fighting in the town of Dael after security forces moved on the town in force. The fighting went on from the early morning to the late afternoon. "Two security force vehicles were blown up. Seven (troops) were killed," said Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the observatory. An activist from the town, in the province of Deraa, said some 30 busloads of security men stormed Dael and two of the buses were blown up in fighting "between security forces and defectors," the Observatory reported. One of the destroyed buses was allegedly empty.
Leadership
The Free Syrian Army operates its central command from a camp in Turkey's southern Hatay provinceHatay Province
Hatay Province is a province in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean coast. It is bordered by Syria to the south and east and the Turkish provinces of Adana and Osmaniye to the north. The province is part of Çukurova, a geographical, economical and cultural region that covers the provinces of...
, close to the Syrian border, and its field command from inside Syria. The FSA has declared the following command structure. Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Riyad al-Asad
Riyad al-Asad
Riyad Mousa al-Asad is the commander of the Free Syrian Army. He is a former Colonel in the Syrian Air Force who defected in July 2011. John Simpson who tracking down and interviewed Col.Al-Asad. He said he is based in a refugee camp at Apaydin, 9 miles from the town of Antakya and very close to...
is the Commander-in-Chief, Colonel Malik Kurdi is his deputy, and Colonel Ahmed Hijazi is the Chief of Staff of the Free Syrian Army.
Battalion Commanders
| Commander | Battalion |
|---|---|
| Lt. Col. Abdul Satar Yunsu | Hamza Khateeb |
| Capt. Ammar Al-Wawi | Ababeel |
| Capt. Ayham al-Kurdi | Abu Fida |
| Capt. Abdelaziz Tlass | Khalid Bin Walid |
| Capt. Ibrahim Majbur | Hurriya |
| Capt. Riyad Ahmad | Samer Nunu |
| Capt. Qais Qata’neh | Omari |
| Lt. Mazen al-Zein | Qassam |
| Maher Al-Rahmoun | Moawiyah Bin Abi Sufian |
| Youssef Yahya | Harmoush |
| Muhammad Tayseer Ousso | Suqur |
| Wassim al-Khalid | Abu Obeidah bin Al-Jarrah |
Battalions
As of October 2011, the Free Syrian Army has according to its deputy commander twenty-two battalions. The battalions are spread across the country in its thirteen different governoratesGovernorates of Syria
Syria has fourteen governorates, or muhafazat . The governorates are divided into sixty districts, or manatiq , which are further divided into subdistricts, or nawahi...
. The battalions are:
- Khalid bin Walid battalion (HomsHomsHoms , previously known as Emesa , is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is above sea level and is located north of Damascus...
city) - Hamzah Al-Khateeb battalion (IdlibIdlib GovernorateIdlib Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in northwestern Syria, bordering Turkey. Its area depends on sources - estimated vary from 5,933 km² to 6,097 km². The Governorate has a population of 1,464,000...
city) - Al-Harmoush battalion (IdlibIdlib GovernorateIdlib Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in northwestern Syria, bordering Turkey. Its area depends on sources - estimated vary from 5,933 km² to 6,097 km². The Governorate has a population of 1,464,000...
province) - Salaheddine Al-Ayoubi battalion (Jisr ash-ShugurJisr ash-ShugurJisr ash-Shugur is a city in Syria in the Idlib Governorate. Situated at an altitude of above sea level on the Orontes river, the city was inhabited by 44,322 people as of 2010....
) - Qashoush battalion (HamaHamaHama is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria north of Damascus. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. Hama is the fourth-largest city in Syria—behind Aleppo, Damascus, and Homs—with a population of 696,863...
city) - Aboul Fidaa battalion (HamaHamaHama is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria north of Damascus. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. Hama is the fourth-largest city in Syria—behind Aleppo, Damascus, and Homs—with a population of 696,863...
province) - Saad Bin Moaz battalion (HamaHama GovernorateHama is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in western-central Syria. Its area depends of sources. It varies from 8,844 km² to 8,883 km². Governorate has a population of 1,593,000...
province) - Moawiyah Bin Abi Sufian (DamascusDamascusDamascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
city) - Abu Obeidah bin Al-Jarrah battalion (DamascusDamascus GovernorateDamascus Governorate is one of the 14 governorates of Syria and consists of only the city of Damascus and the suburb of Yarmouk....
province) - Houriyeh battalion (AleppoAleppo GovernorateAleppo Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,744,000 , almost 23% of the total population of Syria. The governorate is the fifth in area with an area of 18,482 km², about 10% of the total area of...
city) - Ababeel battalion (AleppoAleppo GovernorateAleppo Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,744,000 , almost 23% of the total population of Syria. The governorate is the fifth in area with an area of 18,482 km², about 10% of the total area of...
province) - Omari battalion (Daraa/HauranHauranHauran, , also spelled Hawran or Houran, is a volcanic plateau, a geographic area and a people located in southwestern Syria and extending into the northwestern corner of Jordan. It gets its name from the Aramaic Hawran, meaning "cave land." In geographic and geomorphic terms, its boundaries...
) - Sultan Pasha Al-Atrash battalion (As-Suwayda)
- Qassam battalion (Jableh)
- Suqur battalion (LatakiaLatakiaLatakia, or Latakiyah , is the principal port city of Syria, as well as the capital of the Latakia Governorate. In addition to serving as a port, the city is a manufacturing center for surrounding agricultural towns and villages...
) - Samer Nunu battalion (BaniyasTartus GovernorateTartus Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in western Syria, bordering Lebanon, and is one of the only governorates in Syria that has an Allawite majority.. Sources list the area as 1,890 km² or 1,892 km² . Governorate has a population of 785,000...
) - Mishaal Tammo battalion (Qamishli)
- Odai Al-Tayi battalion (HasakahAl-HasakahAl-Hasakah...
) - Omar Ibn al-Khattab battalion (Deir ez-ZorDeir ez-Zor GovernorateDeir ez-Zor Governorate or Muhafazah Dayr az Zawr is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in eastern Syria, bordering Iraq. It has an area of 33,060 km² and a population of 1,202,000...
city) - Moaz Al-Raqad battalion (Deir ez-ZorDeir ez-Zor GovernorateDeir ez-Zor Governorate or Muhafazah Dayr az Zawr is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in eastern Syria, bordering Iraq. It has an area of 33,060 km² and a population of 1,202,000...
province) - Allahu Akbar battalion (Abu KamalDeir ez-Zor GovernorateDeir ez-Zor Governorate or Muhafazah Dayr az Zawr is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is situated in eastern Syria, bordering Iraq. It has an area of 33,060 km² and a population of 1,202,000...
) - Ahmad Nayif Al-Sukhni battalion (Ar-Raqqah)
International Support
The Libyan National Transitional CouncilNational Transitional Council
The National Transitional Council of Libya , sometimes known as the Transitional National Council, the Interim National Council, or the Libyan National Council,...
announced in November 2011 that it had been in talks with the Syrian National Council and was considering supplying weapons and volunteer fighters of the National Liberation Army to the Free Syrian Army, and that international intervention may only be weeks away. According to people with links to the National Council, the Libyans were offering money, weapons and training forces loyal to the Syrian National Council.
On 29 November, it was reported that at least 600 fighters from Libya had been dispatched to support the Free Syrian Army and had entered Syria through Turkey.