{Early Monday morning the leadership of al-Qaeda disowned Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), the most effective of its two franchises fighting in Syria, in a maneuver that could alter the trajectory of the fight against President Bashar Assad. } <\/p>\n
In a message posted on jihadi websites, the al-Qaeda general command stated that its former affiliate \u201cis not a branch of the al-Qaeda group [and al-Qaeda] does not have an organizational relationship with it and is not the group responsible for their actions.\u201d<\/p>\n
The move had been a long time in the making. Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri has grown increasingly frustrated with ISIS, ever since Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, head of al-Qaeda in Iraq, expanded into the Syrian conflict in April and attempted to bring the local al-Qaeda franchise, the Nusra Front, under his control. Al-Zawahiri intervened in May, admonishing al-Baghdadi to go back to Iraq, but al-Baghdadi refused, snapping back in a terse audio recording. \u201cI have to choose between the rule of God and the rule of al-Zawahiri, and I choose the rule of God.\u201d It was a rare demonstration of defiance in an organization that demands absolute loyalty. Nonetheless, al-Zawahiri seemed prepared to let the matter lie, apparently in recognition of al-Baghdadi\u2019s growing strength; by that time, ISIS, recently strengthened by an influx of foreign fighters, had taken control of the Syrian city of Raqqa. That brought al-Qaeda the closest it had ever been to achieving a long-term goal \u2014 establishing an Islamic state.<\/p>\n
But ISIS\u2019s savagery and draconian interpretations of Islamic law alienated many Syrians and drove a wedge between rebel groups. On Jan. 3, fighting broke out between ISIS and a new alliance that included the Nusra Front. ISIS has managed to stand its ground, but this most recent al-Qaeda announcement could lead to a greater conflagration. Al-Qaeda central may not have been able to stop al-Baghdadi outright, but the threat of excommunication seemed to have reined in his worst tendencies \u2014 his deadly campaign of suicide-bomb attacks in Iraq has not yet been replicated in Syria to the same degree.<\/p>\n
ISIS is now likely to lash out with increased attacks as it tries to prove its efficacy in spite of losing its valuable al-Qaeda designation.<\/p>\n
The Time<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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