Abu Firas al-Suri
| Radwan Nammous | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | 1950 Madaya, Syria |
| Died | April 3, 2016 (aged 65–66) Idlib Governorate, Syria |
| Nationality | Syrian |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |
 Syria(Until 1979)  al-Qaeda(Late 1980s) |
| Service/branch |
 Syrian Army(Until 1979)  al-Nusra Front(2012–2016) |
| Rank | Chief Spokesperson for the al-Nusra Front |
| Battles/wars |
Syria Lebanon |
Syria
Lebanon
Military intervention against ISIL
Radwan Nammous (1950 – April 3, 2016), also known by his nom de guerre Abu Firas al-Suri, was a senior official in the al-Qaeda affiliated al-Nusra Front, serving as the group's spokesman.
Suri was born in 1950 in the Syrian town of Madaya, near Damascus. He joined the Syrian military and attained the rank of lieutenant but was discharged due to his Islamist leanings in 1979.
He then joined the Muslim Brotherhood of Syria and was reportedly a military trainer in the Muslim Brotherhood's Fighting Vanguard group during the Islamist uprising in Syria against the Hafez al-Assad regime between 1979 and 1980.
Al Suri later traveled to Afghanistan, where he met Abdullah Azzam, a founding father of modern jihadism, and Osama bin Laden. He then helped bin Laden and Pakistani jihadists establish Lashkar-e-Taiba, a terrorist organization that remains closely linked to al-Qaeda to this day.
After the 9/11 attacks, al Suri helped the families of al-Qaeda members escape Afghanistan. From 2003 to 2013 he was in Yemen, until the dispute between the al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant erupted.
Due to the infighting between jihadist groups in Syria, Al Qaeda’s senior leaders dispatched al-Suri to Syria, where he participated in failed mediation efforts between al-Nusra Front and ISIL.
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Wikipedia