Syrian opposition leaders are trying to contain a row between rival dissident army officers as they seek to bolster the armed opposition to the regime of Bashar al-Assad following the breakdown of international diplomatic efforts at the UN.
Headed by Turkey-based Colonel Riad al-Assaad, the so-called Free Syrian Army has become a label for dissident brigades which have sided with opposition activists in various parts of Syria, even if decisions are made locally and not necessarily co-ordinated.
Col Assad’s leadership, however, has been challenged by a more senior and more recent defector – General Mustafa al-Sheikh, who is now also based in Turkey.
Officials from the Syrian National Council, the main umbrella opposition group, have been attempting to forge a compromise that would keep Col Assad as the head of the FSA but create a higher military council. This body would group more senior members like Gen Sheikh and be open to other high ranking future defectors.
The deal appeared to be derailed at the weekend, as Col Assaad appeared on BBC Arabic television to denounce the SNC, describing the opposition group as “traitors”. On Monday, after the new higher military council was announced, led by Gen Sheikh, the FSA issued a statement distancing itself from it.
“Col Assaad defected early and he’s established now and all the brigades are tied to him – the chain of command is not clear but they say they are loyal to the FSA,” says one ally of the colonel.
“Sometimes his tongue runs loose but the FSA is not a real army so talking about who has a higher rank is irrelevant – this is a revolution.”
Col Assaad and the SNC have since issued a joint statement and opposition leaders say they will redouble efforts to overcome disagreements. But this has done little to defuse the perception of disarray within the FSA.
The dispute has turned the spotlight again on the dilemma of the Syrian opposition, which western and Arab governments are calling upon to show greater unity.
The formation of the Syrian National Council last year was seen as a significant step, and was hailed by activists on the ground. But the group has yet to win official recognition by foreign powers.
Attempts by the Arab League to bring together the SNC and a rival group known as the Syrian National Co-ordination Committee have failed. The Syrian National Co-ordination Committee is opposed to the militarisation of the uprising and to providing backing for the FSA.
Haitham Maleh, a human rights lawyer and member of the SNC, says divisions among a disparate opposition that was oppressed for decades are inevitable and unity of ranks is less important than rallying around a common goal. “The idea is to agree on a vision – the downfall of the regime and a democratic pluralist Syria,” he says.
But the perceptions of a confused opposition have been exploited by the Syrian regime and its supporters, who maintain there is no coherent alternative to President Assad’s rule.
Radwan Ziadeh, an SNC member, says it is imperative to bolster the FSA after last weekend’s Russian and Chinese veto of a UN Security Council resolution which called for a peaceful political transition. “After the veto the only force we have is the FSA – the priority now is to reorganise and strengthen it.”
Mr Ziadeh says the aim of the SNC is to lobby for funding and weapons for the military defectors who now represent the only hope of protecting the civilian population, though they have also engaged in offensive operations.
But he says no foreign government has been willing to fund the rebels, with most of the money coming from the Syrian community abroad. The reluctance to embrace the dissidents stems partly from fears of fuelling a wider military conflict on the ground but also from concerns about the coherence and effectiveness of the opposition.
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