Al Qaeda disowns its branch in Syria
4 Feb 2014 6:23 AM IST
Al Qaeda broke off ties with one of its purported branches in Syria and distanced itself from the rebel infighting in that country’s civil war, according to a statement Monday.
The announcement appeared to be an attempt by Al Qaeda to put its house in order and reassert influence among rival Islamic groups that have turned against one another in Syria.
Signed by the Al-Qaeda ‘general command,’ the statement said the leadership has cut off the affiliate known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, after it disobeyed orders from the terror network’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahri.
Al-Zawahri last May ordered the Islamic State to operate independently from a rival Al Qaeda branch in Syria, the Nusra Front, led by Abu Mohammed al-Golani.
Al-Baghdadi rejected al-Zawahri’s orders and unsuccessfully sought to merge the two branches.
In Monday’s statement, Al Qaeda said it ‘did not approve of the creation of nor did it control’ the Islamic State, and therefore has ‘no organizational ties with it.’
‘We distance ourselves from the sedition taking place among the Mujahedeen factions (in Syria) and of the forbidden blood shed by any faction,’ the statement said of the infighting among Islamic extremists.
The announcement appeared to be an attempt by Al Qaeda to put its house in order and reassert influence among rival Islamic groups that have turned against one another in Syria.
Signed by the Al-Qaeda ‘general command,’ the statement said the leadership has cut off the affiliate known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, after it disobeyed orders from the terror network’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahri.
Al-Zawahri last May ordered the Islamic State to operate independently from a rival Al Qaeda branch in Syria, the Nusra Front, led by Abu Mohammed al-Golani.
Al-Baghdadi rejected al-Zawahri’s orders and unsuccessfully sought to merge the two branches.
In Monday’s statement, Al Qaeda said it ‘did not approve of the creation of nor did it control’ the Islamic State, and therefore has ‘no organizational ties with it.’
‘We distance ourselves from the sedition taking place among the Mujahedeen factions (in Syria) and of the forbidden blood shed by any faction,’ the statement said of the infighting among Islamic extremists.
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