Opposition–ISIL conflict during the Syrian Civil War
Part of the Syrian Civil War and al-Qaeda–Islamic State conflict
Date 2 January 2014 – c. 2018[12] (4 years) Location Syria Status Opposition victory[12]
Belligerents
Free Syrian Army[1] Support:  United States (2014–17)[2]  Turkey[3]  Qatar  Saudi Arabia (2014–17)  France (2014–18) Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement (2014–18) Syrian Liberation Front Ahrar al-Sham Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement Ahrar ash-Sham (2014–18) Jaysh al-Islam Jabhat Ahl al-Sham (until 2017) Support: Turkey Saudi Arabia[4] Qatar[4]	Tahrir al-Sham (2017–18) Al-Qaeda Al-Nusra Front (2012–17)[5] Jund al-Aqsa (2014–17)[6] Support Saudi Arabia[7] Qatar[8][7]	Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade (2012–16)[9][10] Jaysh al-Jihad (2015–16)[11] Jund al-Aqsa (2017) Katiba al-Bittar al-Libi
Commanders and leaders
Albay Ahmed Berri (FSA Chief of Staff) Zahran Alloush † (Islamic Front Military leader) Ahmed Abu Issa (former) (Islamic Front leader) Abu Khaled al-Suri †[13] (Ahrar ash-Sham senior leader)	Abu Mohammad al-Julani (al-Nusra Front leader) Sami al-Oraydi (Deputy of the al-Nusra Front)[14] Abu Humam al-Shami † (al-Nusra Military Chief)[15] Abu Maria Al-Qahtani (al-Nusra Emir of the Eastern area)[16]	Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi † Abu Ali al-Anbari † (Emir of Syria) Abu Ayman al-Iraqi † (Head of military council) Abu Omar al-Shishani † (ISIL field commander) Haji Bakr †[17] (Senior ISIL commander) Abu Baraa al-Jazairi † (Emir of Saraqeb)[18] Abu Dajana † (Emir of Deir ez-Zor) Abu Mohammad Al-Massri † (Emir of Manbij) Abu Haidara Al-Tounisi † (eastern Qalamoun leader)[19][20]
Strength
Free Syrian Army 40,000–50,000 Army of Mujahedeen 5,000–12,000 Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union 15,000 Islamic Front 40,000–70,000	Al-Nusra Front 20,000[21] Jund al-Aqsa 1,000[22]	ISIL 31,000–100,000[23][24]
Casualties and losses
2,764+ killed[25]		2,196+ killed[25]
605 civilians killed[25] 76 unidentified killed[25] an additional 1,200 combatants and 150 civilians estimated killed[25] Total: 5,641–6,991 killed (up until 28 June 2014)[25]

Opposition–ISIL conflict during the Syrian Civil War started after fighting erupted between Syrian opposition groups and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).^[26] In early January 2014, serious clashes between the groups erupted in the north of the country. Opposition groups near Aleppo attacked ISIL in two areas, Atarib and Anadan, which were both strongholds of the fundamentalist Sunni organization.^[27] Despite the conflict between ISIL and other rebels, one faction of ISIL has cooperated with the al-Nusra Front and the Green Battalion (a group of Saudi fighters) to combat Hezbollah in the Battle of Qalamoun.^[28] By 2018.^[12]

Background: 2013

In 2013–14, there was some co-operation between ISIL and FSA groups.^[29] However, there were conflicts from early 2013. On 5 July 2013, units of the FSA's 33rd Infantry Division were deployed to the town of al-Dana in Idlib Governorate after ISIL fighters opened fire on civilian anti-ISIL protesters. Clashes broke out between the two groups, and resulted in ISIL beheading a commander of the 33rd Division, and taking full control of the town.^[30]

In June 2013, clashes erupted in Jarablus between the FSA's Euphrates Jarabulus Battalions and al-Nusra/ISIL, which resulted in ISIL taking full control of Jarabulus.^[31] After the capture, the Euphrates Jarabulus Battalions moved its headquarters to the YPG-controlled town of Zur Maghar, and attempted to reenter Jarabulus with other FSA factions but were repelled. It then formed an alliance with the YPG in the Kobane Canton.^[32] Some members regrouped into the Jarabulus Brigade, a small independent faction.^[33] In July 2013, in the Battle of Tell Abyad, al-Nusra ISIL captured the border town of Tell Abyad from the Kurdish FSA group Jabhat al-Akrad and the YPG.^[34]

Tension between FSA groups and ISIL had been high since ISIL attacked and captured the Northern Storm Brigade (FSA)-held border town of Azaz^[35] north of Aleppo and the nearby Bab al-Salameh border crossing with Turkey (which served as an important supply route for rebel forces), between 18–23 September 2013.^[36][37] The conflict was renewed over Azaz in early October 2013,^[38] and in late November ISIL captured the border town of Atme from the Hawks of Islam Brigade. This came after infighting between the brigade and other FSA groups in the town. During the battle, activists accused the Supreme Military Council of collaborating with ISIL against the Hawks of Islam.^[39]

In late 2013, ISIL and FSA Division 13 clashed. In December, ISIL overran a Division 13base in Kafr Nabl, seizing ammunition and weaponry. The following day, the Division's Lieutenant Colonel Ahmad al-Sa’oud was ambushed and captured in Taftanaz by ISIL while he was trying to negotiate for their return. He was released after two weeks.^[40] On 31 December 2013, the body of Dr. Hussein Suleiman was handed over in a prisoner swap between ISIL and rival rebel forces. Suleiman was tortured, and died, in ISIL custody.^[41] The opposition National Coalition and activists accused ISIL of serving the interests of the Ba'athist Syrian government by tarnishing the image of their uprising.^[42]

Full-blown conflict between ISIL and other rebel groups erupted in January 2014. In the first few days of the conflict, al-Qaeda's al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham brokered a ceasefire agreement with ISIL in the city of Aleppo and its northern countryside. However, ISIL continued its attacks on other rebel groups and killed more than 24 rebel fighters across northern Syria. The newly created Army of Mujahideen also pledged to fight ISIL in both Aleppo and Idlib.^[43]

Opposition–ISIL conflict, 2014

Start of the rebel offensive, ISIL counter-offensive, and mutual advances

First week

On the evening of 2 January 2014, ISIL forces attacked the rebel-held town of Atarib, where they were accused of two incidents of killing or kidnapping mainstream rebel commanders.^[44]

On 3 January, several civilian protests, counting hundreds of people, were organized against ISIL and to commemorate the death of Suleiman across the Aleppo Governorate. In the Idlib village of Kafr Takharim, ISIL opened fire on the protesters.^[41] There were no reports of casualties. In response to the attack on the protesters, two newly formed Islamist rebel groups of the FSA attacked ISIL positions in more than half a dozen locations in the governorates of Aleppo and Idlib.^[44]

Rebels in Atarib managed to repel the ISIL attack on the town, after which the ISIL fighters were surrounded, resulting in the capture of a Tunisian commander, Abu Saber al-Tunisi. It was unclear if he was summarily executed by the rebels. 42 ISIL fighters were wounded in the fighting in Atarib, while an opposition media activist was killed while covering the clashes.^[41] There were unconfirmed reports of rebels arresting ISIL members in various towns and villages in the Aleppo Governorate and the Idlib Governorate. Fighting raged in the Idlib village of Maarrat Misrin, while in the village of Kafr Nabl, rebel forces surrounded an ISIL facility, giving its fighters 24 hours to surrender. Meanwhile, the rebel Islamic Front,^[44] which was also engaged in the fighting against ISIL,^[41] sent reinforcements to the ISIL-held town of Azaz.^[44]

On 4 January, ISIL were reported to be rounding up "suspect activists" in both Saraqeb and Kafr Nabl.^[1] In the Harem area, ISIL forces executed 30 captives, including civilians, after their base was surrounded by rebel forces. In Aleppo, fighting raged throughout the province, with rebel forces making advances against ISIL. FSA units were reportedly making progress in Atarib, but ISIL was surrounding the town and shelling it.^[1]

ISIL was also on the offensive, attacking rebel positions and ambushing their forces in attacks that left 24 rebels dead. One attack included a car bomb.^[45] At this point, ISIL gave a 24-hour ultimatum to rebel forces attacking them, saying that they would withdraw from Aleppo, allowing government forces to enter rebel territory, if they did not stop their attacks. The rebels reiterated an earlier call on ISIL fighters to defect to their side.^[46]

On 5 January, rebels captured an ISIL base in Manbij after heavy fighting.^[47] Clashes had also erupted in the town of Tabqa, in the Raqqa Governorate, and fighting spread to the central Hama Governorate, where ISIL killed seven rebel fighters.^[45] During the fighting in Manbij, ISIL used car bombs to defend its territory.^[47] Meanwhile, ISIL forces retreated from al-Dana and Atme in the Idlib Governorate, and started heading in the direction of Aleppo. Their positions were overrun by the al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham groups, in a possible deal to avoid larger confrontations.^[48] ISIL also retreated from Darat Izza,^[45] while they managed to retain control of Saraqeb and Kafr Zita. ISIL reinforcements were dispatched from Raqqa to Aleppo.^[49] Overall, 66 combatants, including 11 ISIL fighters, were killed during the day.^[50]

According to the opposition Sham News Network, by this point, rebels had captured more than 80% of the ISIL-held Idlib countryside and 65% of ISIL territory in Aleppo and its countryside.^[51]

By 6 January, rebels had besieged ISIL in its stronghold of Raqqa. During the fighting, rebels released 50 prisoners from ISIL custody. Among those rescued was a Turkish news photographer who had been kidnapped since December 2013. 10 Syrian Kurdish prisoners also managed to escape.^[52] 70 ISIL and 20 rebel fighters had been killed since the rebel attack on Raqqa started, according to a rebel officer who expected that it would take them at least a week to drive the al-Qaida linked militants out of the city. Meanwhile, ISIL detonated a car bomb by a rebel checkpoint near the town of Darkush, 20 rebel fighters were killed in the suicide attack on the checkpoint.^[53] ISIL fighters retreated from Kafr Zita,^[54] In Jarablus, a mile and a half from the Turkish-Syrian border, there were conflicting reports with the Islamic Front stating they had overrun the local ISIL headquarters, with the ISIL denying that and insisting that the group was holding fast.^[55]

On 7 January, it was confirmed that 34 foreign ISIL and Jund al-Aqsa fighters had been executed in the previous few days by rebels in the Jabal al-Zawiya area.^[56] ISIL retreated from Mayadin in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, without any fighting with rebel forces.^[57] East of Rastan, in the Homs Governorate, ISIL attacked a rebel headquarters, killing 15 rebel fighters.^[58] During the day, it was revealed that during the previous evening, ISIL executed up to 50 prisoners in the Qadi al-Askar district of Aleppo. The dead included media activists, relief workers, and other civilians.^[59] According to the opposition SOHR, 42 people were executed, including, 21 rebel fighters and five media activists.^[60]

On 8 January, rebels captured the ISIL headquarters in Aleppo city at the Children's hospital in the Qadi Askar district. ISIL forces lost control over opposition-held areas of the city and retreated to Al-Inzarat on the northeastern outskirts of Aleppo. 300 hostages held by the radical jihadists were set free.^[61] In Raqqa, the hospital was abandoned, bodies were lying in the central square and there was no power or water leaving the city "completely paralyzed", according to an opposition activist. At this point, ISIL controlled two key routes out of Raqqa: to the east toward the Iraqi border and also the road north to the Turkish frontier.^[62] The head of the al-Nusra Front, Abu Mohammad al-Golani, confirmed that fighting had taken place between his organization and ISIL and called for mediation and an end to the "infighting."^[63] Late in the day, ISIL started a counterattack, as it launched car bomb assaults targeting opposition checkpoints. Three attacks took place in Al-Bab, Hreitan, and Jarabulus in the Aleppo Governorate, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. He said similar overnight attacks took place in the Aleppo Governorate, while one occurred in Mayadin in the eastern Deir ez-Zor Governorate. The attack in Al-Bab killed nine people.^[64]

Second week

On 9 January, ISIL sent reinforcements from Deir ez-Zor to back its fighters in the Aleppo countryside. According to local residents, ISIL was preparing many suicide attacks in retaliation for the rebel attacks, and that their commanders were wearing explosive belts all the time. Dutch journalist Lex Runderkamp told Dutch news program NOS that the ISIL reinforcement convoy was 1,300 men strong, including ISIL special forces from Iraq.^[65] In Raqqa, the rebels took control of the political intelligence building, which was located 400 meters from the main ISIL headquarters. However, ISIL still controlled the bridges leading into the city, which left people using boats to get into Raqqa,^[64] and later in the evening, ISIL forces seized the Mashlab district and an al-Nusra Front base in the city.^[66] Clashes erupted between ISIL and a rebel brigade by the Castillo road, in Aleppo Governorate. The rebels blocked an ISIL supply route between al-Jandoul and Castillo. Meanwhile, Islamist rebel brigades sent reinforcements to the Bab al-Salama border crossing, at Azaz, which is primarily controlled by ISIL.^[67] In Idlib province, ISIL opened fire on a demonstration in Kafartkharim and besieged several field clinics, and stormed one of them, searching for rebels injured earlier in the morning during clashes in Atarib.^[68]

According to SOHR, local ISIL forces signed a truce with the Islamic Front and several independent Islamist rebel units in Al-Hasakah Governorate. They agreed with the establishment of a single military command center and legal authority for the area.^[69]

On 10 January, ISIL managed to push back rebel forces on the eastern approaches to Raqqa. ISIL forces also killed 20 rebel fighters in fighting in the town of Al-Bab in Aleppo province,^[70] and managed to capture wheat silos and mills just outside the town.^[71] ISIL commander Abu Omar al-Shishani entered the town with a convoy of 30 vehicles and troops after he lifted the ISIL's siege of Deir-az-Zor airport.^[72]

On 11 January, rebels moved a convoy including tanks and technicals to Saraqeb in preparation to push ISIL out.^[73] Heavy fighting erupted and it was reported that rebels took over most of the town, and besieged hundreds of ISIL fighters. Earlier in the day, five rebels were killed on the outskirts of Saraqeb when their car hit a bomb.^[74] Meanwhile, ISIL forces managed to capture the border town of Tal Abyad, while in Raqqa ISIL fighters captured a rebel checkpoint and the train station.^[75] ISIL fighters also dumped the corpses of dozens of their foes at the village of Jazra, to the west of Raqqa. Dozens of bodies of ISIL fighters were also reportedly in Raqqa's hospital.^[73] Rebels managed to regain territory lost in previous days in Aleppo province and were defending against ISIL counterattacks. 20 rebels were killed in fighting in the town of Anadan,^[76] while 30 rebels were killed in three days of fighting in the village of al-Tiba, northeast of Sekhna.^[77]

On 12 January, it was confirmed that rebel forces had captured the eastern part of Saraqeb with the local ISIL commander surrounded with his fighters in the center of the town.^[78] Fighting was still continuing in Raqqa between ISIL and remnants of rebel units, including the Al-Nusra Front,^[79] although by this point ISIL had captured much of the city.^[80] According to an opposition activist, 95 percent of Raqqa and its countryside were under ISIL control. ISIL forces had also captured the towns of Hrietan and Basraton in Aleppo province.^[79] It was also reported that the bodies of 70 rebels were delivered to Raqqa's hospital after they were executed by ISIL following their capture of Tal Abyad. Another report put the number of executed prisoners at 100.^[81]

On 13 January, it was reported that ISIL had won the battle of Raqqa, capturing most of the province and the provincial capital.^[82] ISIL had also captured Al-Bab^[83] and Beza'a, while the rebels were gaining ground in Jarabulus, near the Turkish border.^[84] Another mass execution of prisoners was also reported near the village of Kantari, about 80 kilometers north of Raqqa, when ISIL killed 46 captured fighters of the Ahrar ash-Sham rebel group.^[83] 14 rebels were also executed in Homs province^[85]

On 14 January, it was reported that rebels captured the villages of Masqan,^[86] Kafar Kalbin and Kafra in Aleppo province, while the ISIL has taken full control of Raqqa city, after the last remaining rebels retreated.^[87] Meanwhile, the rebels also captured the prison in Jarablus, releasing 70 prisoners from ISIL custody.^[88]

On 15 January, an ISIL car bomb in Jarablus killed 26 people, of which 23 were rebel fighters and three were civilians. Meanwhile, in Saraqeb fighting was continuing and opposition sources reported that the local ISIL commander, a Belgian, was killed. ISIL denied the claim.^[18] Between 15 and 17 January, rebels captured Jibreen, Hardntin Kfarrakeshr,^[89][90] Sheikh Ali, Aajel, 46th base, Orum al-Sughra and Reef al-Muhandiseen, while the ISIL retreated from the village of Kafarjoum, which holds the largest ISIL arms depots in all of Syria.^[91] ISIL also withdrew from Saraqab, burning their vehicles as they retreated, while at the same time ISIL recaptured Jarabulus.^[92]

Third week

On 20 January, 2 suicide cars exploded at the Bab Al-Hawa border crossing, 16 people including six rebels were killed.^[93] The same day, ISIL forces seized control of the Al-Jarah military airport.^[93] In Manbij, a large suicide car explosion killed 20 people, including rebels, women, and children^[94] By 23 January, ISIL was in full control of Manbij^[95] and completely secured Darkush the following day.^[96]

Fourth week

On 27 January, it was reported that ISIL senior Commander Sameer Abid Mohammed al-Halefawi (aka Haji Bakr) was killed by rebels in Tal Rifaat, near Azaz,^[17] and at least two other ISIL senior commanders were captured at Hreitan. Four ISIL fighters and three rebels were killed in the fighting.^[97] ISIL confirmed the death of top ISIL leader Haji Bakr on 2 February.^[98]

Al Qaeda breaks links with ISIL and al-Nusra Front joins the fight

On 1 February, ISIL attacked the headquarters of the al-Tawhid Brigade in Aleppo, killing the brigade commander Adnan Bakour and 15 other rebels^[99] at the cost of at least 9 ISIL fighters. The next day, al-Qaeda distanced itself from ISIL and its actions in Syria.^[100]

On 3 February, the Raqqa Revolutionaries Brigade launched a military operation against ISIL checkpoints and strongholds in Raqqa.^[101] The day before, five ISIL fighters were assassinated in the Raqqa national hospital.^[102]

On 5 February, a local group of Suqour al-Sham brigade in Hama and ISIL signed a truce,^[103] It was also reported that The Front of Aleppo Islamic Scholars issued a statement, giving the ISIL fighters in Syria a three-day ultimatum to either return to Iraq or join other armed factions fighting against the Syrian government.^[104]

On 8 February, the Al-Nusra Front and allied rebel factions launched an offensive against the ISIL in the Deir ez-Zor Governorate. It was reported that the ISIL emir of Deir al-Zor, Abu Dajana, was killed in the clashes and the rebels also recaptured facilities in the province.^[105] At the same time, 13 foreign ISIL fighters defected in Raqqa.^[106] Between 10 and 12 February, ISIL had almost completely withdrawn from the eastern province of Deir ez-Zor, including the city of Deir ez-Zor.^[107]

Northern Aleppo fighting

Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Opposition–ISIL_conflict_during_the_Syrian_Civil_War
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