The head of a rebel group with links to Al Qaeda called on Tuesday for a ceasefire between opposition factions who have clashed for five days in the bloodiest bout of infighting since the revolt against Syrian President Bashar Assad.
An audio recording, the leader of the powerful Nusra Front laid much of the blame for the fighting on the Al-Qaeda splinter group known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS).
While both groups have roots in the global terrorist network and welcome foreign militants, Nusra has cooperated more with other rebel groups and has largely avoided the power struggles that ISIS has faced since wresting control of many opposition-held areas from other groups.
More than 274 people have been killed in the rebel-on-rebel clashes in Syria since they began last Friday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group.
“This unfortunate situation has pushed us to launch an initiative to save the battlefields from being lost. This will be done by forming an independent legal council by all the (rebel) factions in addition to a ceasefire,” Golani said.
It was impossible to verify the authenticity of the audio statement, but it was posted on a Twitter account used by the Nusra Front.
Translated and edited by The Syrian Observer
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