Rebels in Syria Becoming More Radicalized as Battle for Aleppo Rages
July 30, 2012
Syrian rebels in communication with western media have revealed that what began in 2011 as a largely secular uprising against President Bashar al-Assad is quickly becoming more radicalized. Muslim jihadists and al-Qa’ida fighters, possibly from Iraq, are taking a more prominent role in the resistance and are pushing an agenda based on jihad. (One meaning of jihad is an armed struggle against those perceived as enemies of Islam.) Even less zealous factions of the resistance, such as the Free Syrian Army, are adopting a more Islamic stance, largely because it attracts funding from radical elements in the Middle East. On July 26, the Free Syrian Army commander fighting in Aleppo issued a YouTube video warning that men joining the rebellion whose intentions were not for God should stay home: “if your intention is for God, then you go for jihad and you gain an afterlife and heaven.”
(World Book map; map data © MapQuest.com, Inc.)
Government forces launched the ground assault on Aleppo on July 28 after several days of sporadic shelling and sorties by fighter jets. Intense fighting in Syria’s largest city and commercial hub has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee. A BBC foreign correspondent just outside the city reports that rebels are outgunned by the army but are fighting an effective guerrilla street war.
Additional World Book articles:
- Arab Spring
- Middle East: From Fall to Spring (a special report)
- Syria 2011 (a Back in Time article)
