Opposition–ISIL conflict during the Syrian Civil War started after fighting erupted between Syrian opposition groups and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). In early January 2014, serious clashes between the groups erupted in the north of the country. Opposition groups near Aleppo attacked ISIL in two areas, Atarib and Anadan, which were both strongholds of the fundamentalist Sunni organization. Despite the conflict between ISIL and other rebels, one faction of ISIL has cooperated with the al-Nusra Front and the Green Battalion (a group of Saudi fighters) to combat Hezbollah in the Battle of Qalamoun. By 2018 the Islamic State was destroyed in the territories held by the opposition.
Background: 2013 In 2013–14, there was some co-operation between ISIL and FSA groups. However, there were conflicts from early 2013. On 5 July 2013, units of the FSA's 33rd Infantry Division were deployed to the town of al-Dana in Idlib Governorate after ISIL fighters opened fire on civilian anti-ISIL protesters. Clashes broke out between the two groups, and resulted in ISIL beheading a commander of the 33rd Division, and taking full control of the town.
In June 2013, clashes erupted in Jarablus between the FSA's Euphrates Jarabulus Battalions and al-Nusra/ISIL, which resulted in ISIL taking full control of Jarabulus. After the capture, the Euphrates Jarabulus Battalions moved its headquarters to the YPG-controlled town of Zur Maghar, and attempted to reenter Jarabulus with other FSA factions but were repelled. It then formed an alliance with the YPG in the Kobane Canton. Some members regrouped into the Jarabulus Brigade, a small independent faction. In July 2013, in the Battle of Tell Abyad, al-Nusra ISIL captured the border town of Tell Abyad from the Kurdish FSA group Jabhat al-Akrad and the YPG.
Tension between FSA groups and ISIL raised sharply in mid 2013. ISIL began moving against the moderate opposition in their stronghold of Raqqa, first by eliminating Raqqa civil leader Abdullah Khalil in April, and then by attacking rival rebel factions in the city. On 13 August, ISIL suicide bombers detonated 4 car bombs at the Ahfad al-Rasul Brigades' headquarters at the Raqqa train station, killing 6 Ahfad al-Rasul fighters, including two commanders, Abu Mazin and Fahd al-Kajwan, and 6 civilians. By 17 August, ISIL had expelled Ahfad al-Rasul from the city. In September of that year, ISIL assassinated the Al-Nusra Front (JAN)-appointed governor of Raqqa, Mohammed Saeed al-Abdullah (also known as "Abu Sa'ad al-Hadrami"), with his body being recovered on September 12. By September 15, ISIL had expelled or neutralized all FSA, Ahrar al-Sham, and JAN-aligned groups in Raqqa. That same month, ISIL attacked and captured the Northern Storm Brigade (FSA)-held border town of Azaz north of Aleppo and the nearby Bab al-Salameh border crossing with Turkey (which served as an important supply route for rebel forces), between 18–23 September 2013.The Islamic Alliance Emerges, Institute for Understanding War, Sep 27, 2013 The conflict was renewed over Azaz in early October 2013, and in late November ISIL captured the border town of Atme from the Hawks of Islam Brigade. This came after infighting between the brigade and other FSA groups in the town. During the battle, activists accused the Supreme Military Council of collaborating with ISIL against the Hawks of Islam.
In late 2013, ISIL and FSA Division 13 clashed. In December, ISIL overran a Division 13base in Kafr Nabl, seizing ammunition and weaponry. The following day, the Division's Lieutenant Colonel Ahmad al-Sa’oud was ambushed and captured in Taftanaz by ISIL while he was trying to negotiate for their return. He was released after two weeks. On 31 December 2013, the body of Dr. Hussein Suleiman was handed over in a prisoner swap between ISIL and rival rebel forces. Suleiman was tortured, and died, in ISIL custody. The opposition National Coalition and activists accused ISIL of serving the interests of the Ba'athist Syrian government by tarnishing the image of their uprising.
Full-blown conflict between ISIL and other rebel groups erupted in January 2014. In the first few days of the conflict, al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham brokered a ceasefire agreement with ISIL in the city of Aleppo and its northern countryside. However, ISIL continued its attacks on other rebel groups and killed more than 24 rebel fighters across northern Syria. The newly created Army of Mujahideen also pledged to fight ISIL in both Aleppo and Idlib.
Opposition–ISIL conflict, 2014
Start of the rebel offensive, ISIL counter-offensive, and mutual advances First week On the evening of 2 January 2014, ISIL forces attacked the rebel-held town of Atarib, where they were accused of two incidents of killing or kidnapping mainstream rebel commanders.
On 3 January, several civilian protests, counting hundreds of people, were organized against ISIL and to commemorate the death of Suleiman across the Aleppo Governorate. In the Idlib village of Kafr Takharim, ISIL opened fire on the protesters. There were no reports of casualties. In response to the attack on the protesters, two newly formed Islamist rebel groups of the FSA attacked ISIL positions in more than half a dozen locations in the governorates of Aleppo and Idlib.
Rebels in Atarib managed to repel the ISIL attack on the town, after which the ISIL fighters were surrounded, resulting in the capture of a Tunisian commander, Abu Saber al-Tunisi. It was unclear if he was summarily executed by the rebels. 42 ISIL fighters were wounded in the fighting in Atarib, while an opposition media activist was killed while covering the clashes. There were unconfirmed reports of rebels arresting ISIL members in various towns and villages in the Aleppo Governorate and the Idlib Governorate. Fighting raged in the Idlib village of Maarrat Misrin, while in the village of Kafr Nabl, rebel forces surrounded an ISIL facility, giving its fighters 24 hours to surrender. Meanwhile, the rebel Islamic Front, which was also engaged in the fighting against ISIL, sent reinforcements to the ISIL-held town of Azaz.
On 4 January, ISIL were reported to be rounding up "suspect activists" in both Saraqeb and Kafr Nabl. In the Harem area, ISIL forces executed 30 captives, including civilians, after their base was surrounded by rebel forces. In Aleppo, fighting raged throughout the province, with rebel forces making advances against ISIL. FSA units were reportedly making progress in Atarib, but ISIL was surrounding the town and shelling it.
ISIL was also on the offensive, attacking rebel positions and ambushing their forces in attacks that left 24 rebels dead. One attack included a car bomb. At this point, ISIL gave a 24-hour ultimatum to rebel forces attacking them, saying that they would withdraw from Aleppo, allowing government forces to enter rebel territory, if they did not stop their attacks. The rebels reiterated an earlier call on ISIL fighters to defect to their side.
On 5 January, rebels captured an ISIL base in Manbij after heavy fighting. Clashes had also erupted in the town of Tabqa, in the Raqqa Governorate, and fighting spread to the central Hama Governorate, where ISIL killed seven rebel fighters. During the fighting in Manbij, ISIL used car bombs to defend its territory. Meanwhile, ISIL forces retreated from al-Dana and Atme in the Idlib Governorate, and started heading in the direction of Aleppo. Their positions were overrun by the al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham groups, in a possible deal to avoid larger confrontations. ISIL also retreated from Darat Izza, while they managed to retain control of Saraqeb and Kafr Zita. ISIL reinforcements were dispatched from Raqqa to Aleppo. Overall, 66 combatants, including 11 ISIL fighters, were killed during the day.
According to the opposition Sham News Network, by this point, rebels had captured more than 80% of the ISIL-held Idlib countryside and 65% of ISIL territory in Aleppo and its countryside.
By 6 January, rebels had besieged ISIL in its stronghold of Raqqa. During the fighting, rebels released 50 prisoners from ISIL custody. Among those rescued was a Turkish news photographer who had been kidnapped since December 2013. 10 Syrian Kurdish prisoners also managed to escape. 70 ISIL and 20 rebel fighters had been killed since the rebel attack on Raqqa started, according to a rebel officer who expected that it would take them at least a week to drive the al-Qaida linked militants out of the city. Meanwhile, ISIL detonated a car bomb by a rebel checkpoint near the town of Darkush, 20 rebel fighters were killed in the suicide attack on the checkpoint. ISIL fighters retreated from Kafr Zita,Al Qaida rebels leave mass grave behind as they desert base in Syria In Jarablus, a mile and a half from the Turkish-Syrian border, there were conflicting reports with the Islamic Front stating they had overrun the local ISIL headquarters, with the ISIL denying that and insisting that the group was holding fast.
On 7 January, it was confirmed that 34 foreign ISIL and Jund al-Aqsa fighters had been executed in the previous few days by rebels in the Jabal al-Zawiya area. ISIL retreated from Mayadin in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, without any fighting with rebel forces. East of Rastan, in the Homs Governorate, ISIL attacked a rebel headquarters, killing 15 rebel fighters. During the day, it was revealed that during the previous evening, ISIL executed up to 50 prisoners in the Qadi al-Askar district of Aleppo. The dead included media activists, relief workers, and other civilians. According to the opposition SOHR, 42 people were executed, including, 21 rebel fighters and five media activists.
On 8 January, rebels captured the ISIL headquarters in Aleppo city at the Children's hospital in the Qadi Askar district. ISIL forces lost control over opposition-held areas of the city and retreated to Al-Inzarat on the northeastern outskirts of Aleppo. 300 hostages held by the radical jihadists were set free. In Raqqa, the hospital was abandoned, bodies were lying in the central square and there was no power or water leaving the city "completely paralyzed", according to an opposition activist. At this point, ISIL controlled two key routes out of Raqqa: to the east toward the Iraqi border and also the road north to the Turkish frontier. The head of the al-Nusra Front, Ahmed al-Sharaa, confirmed that fighting had taken place between his organization and ISIL and called for mediation and an end to the "infighting." Late in the day, ISIL started a counterattack, as it launched car bomb assaults targeting opposition checkpoints. Three attacks took place in Al-Bab, Hreitan, and Jarabulus in the Aleppo Governorate, Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP. He said similar overnight attacks took place in the Aleppo Governorate, while one occurred in Mayadin in the eastern Deir ez-Zor Governorate. The attack in Al-Bab killed nine people.
Second week