Is new strategy needed for fighting IS in Syria?
In an interview with Al-Monitor, a senior member of the New Syrian Army, Abdulsalam Muzil, talks about his force’s achievements and what's to come in the battle against the Islamic State.
In September 2015, an announcement was made about the formation of the New Syrian Army (NSA), which would initially begin its operations by fighting the Islamic State (IS), without any mention about it possibly confronting Bashar al-Assad’s forces. This is despite the fact that the NSA commander, Khazal al-Sarhan, told various media outlets that Assad and IS were but two sides of the same coin, and that his army would fight Assad once IS is defeated.
As part of the US Pentagon’s plan to combat IS, the NSA was supplied with arms and logistical support through camps located in al-Tanf, close to the border with Jordan, in southeastern Syria.
Al-Monitor met in Istanbul with Abdulsalam Muzil, a senior member of the NSA and general coordinator for the Authenticity and Development Front (Free Army), considered to be the nucleus of the NSA, to ask him about his army and its activities.
The text of the interview follows:
