Jaysh al-Jihad

Not to be confused with Army of the Holy War.
Jaysh al-Jihad
جيش الجهاد
LeadersAbu Mussab Al-Fanussy
Dates of operationFebruary 2015[1] – 21 May 2016
HeadquartersAl-Qahtaniyah, Quneitra[1]
Active regionsQuneitra Governorate and Daraa Governorate, Syria[1]
IdeologySalafi Jihadism
Size500[1]
Part of Islamic State (allegedly)
AlliesYarmouk Martyrs Brigade
Opponents
Battles and warsSyrian Civil War

Jaysh al-Jihad (Jihad Army) was an Islamist rebel group based in Quneitra Governorate. The group formed from the merger of 7 small independent groups and factions that defected from Nusra Front after it clashed with the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade in December 2014. These groups were: Jihad Brigades, Jamaat Jund al-Islam, Jamaat Abu Baseer, Mujahideen of al-Sham movement, Jamaat Shabab Ahl al-Sunnah, Nurayn Brigade, and Jamaat Bunyan al-Marsous.[1]

The group had been accused by other Syrian rebel groups of being affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).[6][7] In April 2015, violent clashes broke out between the group and the Free Syrian Army and al-Nusra Front, after Jaish al-Jihad militants ambushed and killed six FSA fighters at a checkpoint in Quneitra.[8] By 6 May 2015, Nusra and other rebel groups announced that they had cleared al-Qahtaniyah and Quneitra city of Jaysh al-Jihad forces.[1]

In May 2016, remnants of Jaysh al-Jihad joined with two other Pro-ISIL factions in Southern Syria, the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade and Islamic Muthanna Movement, to form the Khalid ibn al-Walid Army.[9]

  1. ^ a b c d e f "The Islamic State in Southern Syria" (PDF). Carter Center. 15 May 2015. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Islamist fighters seize southern Syria crossing: monitor". Reuters. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  3. ^ "Jihadists clash with Syrian rebels along Israel's border". AP. 29 April 2015. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  4. ^ "Rebels fight ISIS-linked group near Israeli-occupied Golan". AFP. 28 April 2015. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  5. ^ "Syrian rebels expel ISIS from town near Israeli border". ARA News. 4 May 2015. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  6. ^ ""جيش الجهاد".. هل هو خلايا نائمة لـ"داعش" في درعا والقنيطرة؟". Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  7. ^ "دوت مصر - 7 فصائل سورية تعلن إنشاء "جيش الجهاد"". دوت مصر. Archived from the original on 17 May 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
  8. ^ "The emergence of IS in southern Syria". Middle East Eye. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
  9. ^ "Far from Raqqa and Fallujah , Syria rebels open new front against ISIL in the south". The National. 29 May 2016.