Manbij Military Council

Manbij Military Council
مجلس منبج العسكري
Top commander
SpokespersonShervan Derwish
Notable commanders
  • Faisal Abdi Bilal Saadoun (DOW) ("Abu Layla", 2016)
  • Dilsuz Hashme[3]
  • Ibrahim Semho (Euphrates Liberation Brigade)[3]
  • Abu Jassim
  • Abu Khalaf
  • Ahmad Arsh[4] (Manbij Revolutionaries Battalion)
  • Ibrahim al-Banawi
Dates of operation2 April 2016 – present
Group(s)
HeadquartersTishrin Dam (pre-offensive)
Manbij (post-offensive)
Active regionsAleppo, Raqqa, Hasaka, and Deir ez-Zor governorates, Syria
Size5,000–6,000 (2018)[7]
Part of Syrian Democratic Forces (unofficially)[8][9][10]
Allies United States
 France
Opponents Islamic State
Syrian National Army
 Turkey (denied by MMC)[10]
Battles and wars
WebsiteOfficial website

The Manbij Military Council (MMC) is a coalition established by several groups in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), primarily the Northern Sun Battalion, on 2 April 2016 at the Tishrin Dam on the Euphrates. The MMC led the SDF's Manbij offensive from June 2016 that led to the capture of the city of Manbij from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant two months later. Most fighters in the MMC are from Manbij and the surrounding areas.

  1. ^ "Muhammad Abu Adel, MMC new commander". Hawar News Agency. 18 September 2017. Archived from the original on 23 January 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  2. ^ "FSA Qiyam Movement claims the responsibility".
  3. ^ a b Aris Roussinos (19 September 2017). "Inside The Fight To Retake Raqqa From ISIS".
  4. ^ a b "A Border Police of Assad regime? or a commander in SDF factions?". Verify. 6 March 2017. Archived from the original on 25 July 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  5. ^ "Join the banner of liberalization of the Euphrates to the Military Council in Aleppo Manbej". ARA News. 2 October 2016. Archived from the original on October 4, 2016.
  6. ^ "The formation of a brigade Hawks Manbej and join the Council of Manbej military". Hawar News Agency (in Arabic). 27 November 2016. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  7. ^ Ibrahim Humaidi (6 June 2018). "Asharq Al-Awsat Exclusive: Manbij Agreement Tests US-Turkish Ties". Asharq Al-Awsat.
  8. ^ Hadeel al-Saidawi (5 October 2018). "The Meaning of Manbij". Carnegie Middle East Center.
  9. ^ "Islamic State claims attack on SDF in Manbij, first since territorial defeat". Middle East Eye. 26 March 2019.
  10. ^ a b "We are not against turkey… The Syrian Democratic Forces are our ally and we are not subordinated to them". North Press Agency. 9 May 2019.
  11. ^ Wladimir van Wilgenburg (18 April 2017). "200 fighters from Manbij to join Raqqa operation, SDF gets closer to Tabqa centre". ARA News. Archived from the original on 19 April 2017. Retrieved 18 April 2017.