Al-Qaeda grows powerful in Syria
2012-12-20 14:33
Amman - Having seen its star wane in Iraq, al-Qaeda has
staged a comeback in neighbouring Syria, posing a dilemma for the opposition
fighting to remove President Bashar Assad and making the West balk at military
backing for the revolt.
The rise of al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, al-Nusra Front,
which the United States designated a terrorist organisation last week, could
usher in a long and deadly confrontation with the West, and perhaps Israel.
Inside Syria, the group is exploiting a widening sectarian
rift to recruit Sunnis who saw themselves as disenfranchised by Assad's Alawite
minority, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam that dominates Syria's power and
security structures.
Al-Nusra appears to have gained popularity in a country that
has turned more religious as the uprising, mainly among Sunni Muslims, has been
met with increasing force by authorities.
It has claimed responsibility for spectacular and deadly
bombings in Damascus and Aleppo, and its fighters have joined other rebel
brigades in attacks on Assad's forces.
According to Site Intelligence group, Nusra claimed
responsibility in one day alone last month for 45 attacks in Damascus, Deraa,
Hama and Homs provinces that reportedly killed dozens, including 60 in a single
suicide bombing.
"In 18 communiqués issued on jihadist forums ... most
of which contain pictures of the attacks, the al-Nusra Front claimed ambushes,
assassinations, bombings and raids against Syrian security forces and
'shabbiha', pro-Bashar al-Assad thugs," Site said.
Members of the group interviewed by Reuters say al-Nusra
aims to revive the Islamic Caliphate, which dates back to the Prophet
Mohammad's seventh century companions, forerunners of the large empire that
once stretched into Europe.
That prospect alarms many in Syria, from minority
Christians, Alawites and Shi'ites to traditionally conservative but tolerant
Sunni Muslims who are concerned that al-Nusra would try to impose Taliban-style
rule.
