TELL ABYAD, Syria — The Liwa Thuwar al-Raqqa (Raqqa Revolutionaries' Brigades), affiliated with the Free Syrian Army (FSA), is one of the factions that has continued to wage war against the Islamic State (IS). In an interview with Al-Monitor, the brigade’s commander, known by the nom de guerre Abu Issa, said that his brigade had joined the Syrian Democratic Forces, which includes Kurdish, Arab, Turkmen and Christian factions, as part of a strategy to combat the terrorism of IS and other extremist organizations. He also said the brigade's war against the Syrian regime continues unabated and emphasized that Liwa Thuwar al-Raqqa remains committed to the Syrian revolution, as evidenced by its continuing to raise the Syrian revolutionary flag.
Abu Issa sat for an interview with Al-Monitor on Feb. 10 at one of his headquarters in the Tell Abyad countryside in Raqqa province and continued the conversation by phone in March.
