Reactions of various militant groups to the US missile strike on a Syrian military airfield near Homs varied from calls for a military intervention to warnings of a US conspiracy.
Let’s take a quick look at them:
Jaish al-Islam: an Islamic faction mainly supported by the USA and Saudi Arabia. This is the most powerful group in Damascus and its surroundings. It released a declaration from all parties of the Free Syrian Army including some major factions like Ahmad Al-Abdo, Jaish al-Izza, Sokour al-Sharkia and the Free Idlib Army. All of them is currently involved in clashes in Idlib, Lattakia, Dara’a and Qalamoun. The declaration welcomes the US strike and describes it as a turning point in the US policy in Syria. The statement also called for more direct military support from the US instead of political work.
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Ahrar al-Sham: considered one of the largest factions in northern and southwestern Syria and has radical Islamic origins. The group is recognized as a terrorist group by several states, includign Russia. The faction did not release any formal declaration supporting the US strike. However, its last declaration about Khan Shekhon assault had called for more US involvement to the conflict. It seems that Ahrar al-Sham didn’t want to embarrass itself with a pro-US strike declaration infront of its radical Islamic fighters.
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Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda): probably, the most powerful ‘moderate’ formation throughout the entire Syria did not release formally a condemnation of the Khan Shekhon incident or any declaration about the US missile strike. However, a mmajority of media outlets and social media accounts linked to the group had warned from supporting the US strike calling it a conspiracy. They used phrases to describe the strike like “Trump saved Assad!” doubting its seriousness and success, Musleh al-A’yani (one of the group’s Sheikhs) said that this strike was a US trick to cheat the Syrian people.
ISIS: the group didn’t release any declaration but the terrorist organisation exploited the assault immediately to attack Syrian Army positions at the Faraklas road northwest of the Sha’yrat Airbase and west of Taifour on the same road where it allegly killed several Syrian soldiers.
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US/NATO backed terrorists supporting US strikes against their biggest enemy, no surprise here.
Of course! That’s predictable..