ISIL Vs. FSA: Al-Qaeda Controls Azaz

Local Editor

"Syria's opposition National Coalition" on Friday condemned recent attacks by al-Qaeda militants of the so-called "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" [ISIL] on mainstream of the so-called "Free Syrian Army".

"The Coalition condemns the aggressions against the forces of the Syrian revolution and the repeated disregard for the lives of Syrians, and considers that this behavior runs contrary to the Syrian revolution and the principles it is striving to achieve," a statement said.

The group denounced in particular ISIS's seizure of the town of Azaz on the border with Turkey on Wednesday after an hours-long firefight with FSA fighters and its attempt to take control of the Bab as-Salameh border crossing.
The ISIL on Wednesday killed at least five members of the "Northern Storm Brigade", an armed group that controls the border, highlighting Syria's deep opposition divisions.
The confrontation in the town of Azaz was one of the most serious clashes between the al-Qaeda affiliate and the FSA.

A Turkish official told Reuters the Oncupinar border gate - about 5 km from Azaz and opposite the Syrian Bab al-Salameh gate - had been closed for "security reasons".
"There is still confusion about what is happening on the Syrian side. All humanitarian assistance that normally goes through the gate has ceased," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

A militant from Azaz who identified himself as Mohamed al-Azizi said fighting flared up again in the border area on Thursday when Northern Storm members moved to retake a checkpoint from ISIL fighters about 2 km from the frontier.
"There are very heavy clashes happening now," he said, citing an armed group commander. He did not have details about the number of any wounded or dead.
ISIL supporters also reported renewed fighting and people near the town said they heard heavy machine gun fire.

Northern Storm fighters moved to the border crossing, joined by fighters from the powerful Tawheed Brigade who came from Aleppo to try to broker a truce. Tawheed has a large presence in Aleppo, Syria's largest city, about 30 km south of Azaz.
"Reinforcements from the Tawheed Brigade were sent to impose a ceasefire on the two sides," said Abu Obeida, a Tawheed spokesman. "There is still no ceasefire yet ... There are negotiations under way."
The clashes were a stark illustration of the relative power of the al Qaeda-linked fighters in Syria fighting. It also highlights the divisions that have plagued the opposition.
ISIL declared an offensive last week against two other rebel factions, accusing them of attacking its forces and suggesting they may have collaborated with the government.

"What is worrying are the clashes themselves," a second Turkish official said, referring to rebel infighting generally.
"What we want is to see the various coalition groups put their house in order and focus on the struggle with the regime, because that is the real issue - the violence inflicted by the regime on the Syrian people."

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team