Southern Front (Syrian rebel group)
The Southern Front (Arabic: الجبهة الجنوبية) was a Syrian rebel alliance consisting of 54 or 58 Syrian opposition factions affiliated with the Free Syrian Army, established on 13 February 2014 in southern Syria.[1][11][17]
Southern Front
See Leadership
Syrian nationalism[9][10]
Anti-authoritarianism[10]
Islamism (factions)[11]
Secularism (factions)[12]
Free Syrian Army (disputed)
See Nature of the Front
United States (until 2017)
Saudi Arabia (until 2017)
Jordan (until 2018)
Qatar (alleged)
Alwiya al-Furqan- Army of Free Tribes
- Al-Qaratayn Martyrs Brigade[15]
- Army of the South
Revolutionary Commando Army
al-Nusra Front (sometimes)
Ahrar al-Sham
Jaysh al-Islam
Tahrir al-Sham
By June 2015, the Southern Front controlled about 70 percent of Daraa Governorate, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies.,[18] but by 2018, the Front was defunct, with most of its fighters either integrating into Assad's army, or fleeing to FSA held lands in the north.
Claims have been made by the Southern Front itself[19] and by media in Britain,[17] Germany[11] and the United Arab Emirates[20] that the Southern Front is being funded by the US and its allies, possibly through a US led Military Operations Center (MOC) based in Amman, Jordan. Since its formation, rebels said, field operation rooms have been added inside Syria to improve coordination between units.[7] The coalition was "described by Western officials as the best organized of the mainstream opposition".[21] The constituent groups ranged from secularist groups to moderate religious groups, and the Southern front has been described as a "non-hardline Islamist rebel group" that rejects extremism.[11]
History[edit]
Formation[edit]
In mid-February 2014, according to a Syrian rebel brigade officer, the Military Operations Command (MOC) in Jordan designed for channeling Western and Gulf aid to moderate rebel forces in southern Syria convened a meeting with leaders of nearly 50 southern rebel groups and directed them to create a new umbrella coalition.[1] This resulted in the "Southern Front" being formed on 13 February 2014.[1][22]
The formation of the front and its backing by western forces challenged al-Nusra's military and political success in the region, though Southern Front units continued to cooperate with al-Nusra forces.[28]
The Southern Front quickly became the largest rebel fighter umbrella organization in Southern Syria, comprising 25–30,000 fighters, the great majority of the South's rebel groups and manpower.[22]
Initial growth[edit]
On 13 November 2014, it was reported that 15 factions of the Southern Front drew up a political program as an alternative to the exile-led opposition in Turkey, in which they are planning to turn the Southern Front into a civilian security force.[21] At the same time a provincial council was established. This political program is intended to have "broad appeal among Syrian civilians and to undercut support for more extreme interpretations of Islam that has been spreading".[20]
Around that time, almost 40 small rebel groups joined the First Corps in the south.[20]
On 27 December 2014, the 18 March Division, Yarmouk Army, Fallujah of Houran Brigade and Lions of Sunna Brigade merged under the command structure of the Hawks of the South coalition to strengthen the Southern Front.[29]
On 1 January 2015, the Hamza Division, Syria Revolutionaries Front (SRF) southern command and 1st Artillery Regiment merged under the command structure of the First Army.[30]
As of February 2015, Southern Front operations were executed through seven 'Southern Front operation rooms'.[31]
On 15 May 2015, the Southern Front unified under one military council, chaired by 7 senior members.[32] On 1 June 2015, the Southern Front paraded for the graduation of one thousand new members.[33]
In June 2015, the SF launched Operation Southern Storm to take Deraa city's northern and eastern districts from government control. The operation was largely unsuccessful.[22]
Decline from late 2015[edit]
After Operation Southern Storm, SF declined in size and lost some of its support from the MOC.[22] In late 2016, its then 58 groups were re-organised around four of the largest units with close ties to the MOC: Youth of Sunnah Brigade, Yarmouk Army, 24th Infantry Division and Amoud Houran Division.[22]
On 18 June 2018, the Southern Front was hit by "Operation Basalt", a pro-Syrian government offensive in Daraa and Quneitra province. By 23 July the forces of the Southern Front were fully defeated, and lost all territory that was under their control.[4] Surrendering fighters agreed to either reconciliation deals or were relocated to Idlib.[5][6]
Many of the "reconciled" fighters have gone on to participate in the Daraa insurgency, starting on 23 November 2018 (including the March 2020 Daraa clashes).