Rise of Islamic state tests Syrian army strategy
27 July 2014 5:25 AM IST
The emergence of the al-Qaida offshoot, formerly known as the Islamic state in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), has so far allowed President Bashar al-Assad to present himself to the world as a bulwark against Sunni Islamist radicals.
At the same time, the group’s tendency to fight more moderate rebel forces also helped to divide the opposition, making it easier for Assad’s forces to recapture territory lost in earlier periods of Syria’s civil war.
As a result, some analysts suspect army commanders pursued a twin-track strategy against ISIS - they have sought to reduce the group’s threat to the state, while ensuring it remains strong enough to continue feuding with other rebels.
Now that Islamic state’s fighters have gained momentum in Syria, boosted by equipment seized in a rapid offensive next door in Iraq, the army may need to become more confrontational with the group if it wants to avoid losing territory to it.
Last month Islamic state declared an ‘Islamic caliphate’ in territory it controls in Iraq and Syria, and vowed to expand.
It has mainly advanced in Syria by capturing land from more moderate rebel fighters. But it is now clashing with the Syrian military more often, and the army has responded by stepping up aerial bombings on its positions.
In the short term, Damascus has not been too worried about ISIS, said a former Syrian diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity.
‘In the long-term though, it must be a matter of great concern because it makes it all the more difficult should ISIS establish itself semi-permanently, especially with its control of resources like the oil.’
At the same time, the group’s tendency to fight more moderate rebel forces also helped to divide the opposition, making it easier for Assad’s forces to recapture territory lost in earlier periods of Syria’s civil war.
As a result, some analysts suspect army commanders pursued a twin-track strategy against ISIS - they have sought to reduce the group’s threat to the state, while ensuring it remains strong enough to continue feuding with other rebels.
Now that Islamic state’s fighters have gained momentum in Syria, boosted by equipment seized in a rapid offensive next door in Iraq, the army may need to become more confrontational with the group if it wants to avoid losing territory to it.
Last month Islamic state declared an ‘Islamic caliphate’ in territory it controls in Iraq and Syria, and vowed to expand.
It has mainly advanced in Syria by capturing land from more moderate rebel fighters. But it is now clashing with the Syrian military more often, and the army has responded by stepping up aerial bombings on its positions.
In the short term, Damascus has not been too worried about ISIS, said a former Syrian diplomat who spoke on condition of anonymity.
‘In the long-term though, it must be a matter of great concern because it makes it all the more difficult should ISIS establish itself semi-permanently, especially with its control of resources like the oil.’
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