Former rebels were promoted to officers in Syria’s future army in a decree passed by de facto leader Ahmad al-Sharaa — with a war monitor and experts identifying on Monday foreign jihadists among them.
The new authorities in Damascus, who until recently were Islamist-led rebels fighting to overthrow Bashar al-Assad, last week unveiled an accord with armed groups in Syria on their dissolution and integration into the defence ministry.
A decree, published late Sunday on the Telegram account of Sharaa’s General Command, listed 49 people to be made officers, including former rebels and ex-army officers who deserted to join the opposition in the early days of Syria’s civil war.
The promotions are part of efforts aimed at “the development and modernisation of the military… in order to guarantee security and stability”, the decree said.
Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor, told AFP that “most of those who have been promoted are people within Ahmed al-Sharaa’s inner circle”.
They are the first military promotions since Sharaa’s Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group led the offensive that toppled Assad on December 8.
Two men have been given the rank of general, including Murhaf Abu Qasra, the military head of HTS, who has been tipped to become defence minister in the transitional government.
Five others were made brigadier generals and around 40 were given the rank of colonel.
The Britain-based Observatory with a network of sources inside Syria has identified at least “six foreign jihadists” among those promoted, including an Albanian, a Jordanian, a Tajik, a Uyghur and a Turk from HTS.
The Uyghur is a member of the Turkistan Islamic Party, a jihadist group whose fighters mostly hail from China’s Uyghur minority.
Aymenn al-Tamimi, an expert on jihadist groups and the Syrian conflict, meanwhile identified three foreigners on the list: a Uyghur, a Jordanian and a Turk who “headed the block of Turkish fighters under HTS and is now a brigadier general”.
Among the Syrian officers, the majority come from HTS, with the rest coming from “allied factions” the Observatory said.
HTS itself has jihadist roots in Al-Qaeda and its former Syrian branch the Al-Nusra Front.
Find the original article at Space War.
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The new New Year Theme. Seems this year will be: Rally Men ! My fellow countrymen and all who oppose USA, Jews, and what ever other In-Fa-dells are left , except our COMUNIST Comrades in arms. Prepare to March ! Defeat and Concur ! Beat your Chests, pound the War drums. Thus says the WOLFs, Thus says the PACK !!! What the Buzzards do not pick clean ? we will Burn the rest.
Last comment. Religion is Each GOD, no matter which GOD given Right. Individual not country , group. So my Question ? how can you have, lets say for example only ? You are a country with a Human right policy, to live together best as Possible. No religion ,ABSOLUTE. Then lets take maybe the MUSLIM RELIGION being someone’s choice. WHY – HOW, can some one in this GOVERNMENT be allowed to FLAME their Believes on the Behalf of our Government that doe not REFLECT THE WHOLE MAJORITY OF THE COUNTRY ? THEY ARE SUPPOSE TO REPRESENT !?!? Russia Does not have this problem ! Or Did Stalin. Kill all INFADELS , JEWS ! is only sad to say a third of world Perfect PLAN OR GOAL. One third we want to be RICHEST, last and Least ? JUST LIVE and be LEFT THE FUDGE ALONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Truly the BIRD of PARADISE is Spectacular ! But MAN’s Idea of Paradise is no where NEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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