FSA Fires Military Chief over Leadership Paralysis

Local Editor

The so-called "Free Syrian Army" said Sunday it had fired Selim Idriss as its military chief, citing the difficulties faced by the so-called "Syrian revolution".
In a video broadcast on the Internet, the group coalition said its military council had decided to replace Idriss with Brigadier General Abdel al-Ilah al-Bachir.

"Colonel" Qassem Saadeddine said the decision was taken due to "the paralysis within the military command these past months" and the need to "restructure".

A source inside the Syrian opposition stated that Idriss - who was appointed to the role in December 2012 - had faced criticism for failings on the battlefield.
These included "errors and carelessness in combat" and "poor distribution of weapons among the rebels on the ground," the source said.

He is also accused of distancing himself from "the concerns of the insurgents".
The group's new leader al-Bachir is the head of the military council in the southern province of Quneitra. He deserted the regular army in 2012.

According to the FSA Facebook page, al-Bachir's son was killed in fighting at the beginning of the year.

The FSA's decision to replace Idriss comes after talks between the Syrian regime and the opposition in Geneva ended without reaching any results, throwing the future of the negotiations to end the bloody conflict into doubt.

Damascus insisted the talks did not fail and that "important progress" was made, despite the rivals appearing further apart than ever.

No date has been set for a third round of talks.

Source: News agencies, Edited by website team