Suqour al-Sham
| Suqour al-Sham Brigade لواء صقور الشام |
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|---|---|
| Participant in the Syrian Civil War | |
Logo of the Islamic Front used by Suqour al-Sham
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| Active | September 2011—22 March 2015 3 September 2016—present |
| Ideology |
Sunni Islamism Salafism |
| Leaders | Ahmed Abu Issa Abu Hussein al-Dik † (Senior commander) |
| Headquarters | Sarjeh, Idlib Governorate, Syria |
| Area of operations |
Idlib Governorate, Syria Aleppo Governorate, Syria |
| Strength |
9,000 - 10,000(2013) 400(December 2014) |
| Part of |
Islamic Front (2013–2015)
Syrian Islamic Liberation Front (2012-2013) Syrian Revolutionary Command Council (2014-2015) Army of Conquest (2015-present) |
| Allies |
Ahrar ash-Sham al-Nusra Front Free Syrian Army Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union Army of Mujahedeen Alwiya al-Furqan Sham Legion |
| Opponents |
Syrian Armed Forces Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant |
| Battles and wars | |
9,000 - 10,000(2013)
Islamic Front (2013–2015)
The Suqour al-Sham Brigade (Arabic: لواء صقور الشام, English: Falcons of the Levant Brigade), also known as the Sham Falcons Brigade, is an armed rebel organisation formed by Ahmed Abu Issa early in the Syrian Civil War to fight against the Syrian Government. It was a member of the Islamic Front and a former unit of the Free Syrian Army and the Syrian Islamic Liberation Front. They have a history of coordinating with Ahrar al-Sham and the Al-Nusra Front (a group which has re-branded itself Jabhat Fateh al-Sham). In March 2015, the Suqour al-Sham Brigade merged with Ahrar ash-Sham, but left Ahrar al-Sham in September 2016. Also in September 2016 they joined the Army of Conquest which Ahrar al-Sham is also a member.
Suqour al-Sham’s ideology has been described by Asher Berman of the Institute for the Study of War as Islamist but not having a global jihadist outlook. In a sermon delivered in a mosque in April 2012, Abu Issa said Muslims had lost their honor because they had abandoned jihad, replacing aspirations for martyrdom with a fear of death. However, in an interview in June 2012 Issa described his vision for a post-Assad Syria as a moderate Islamic state “without imposing it on society.”
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Wikipedia