This week in northern Syria
#87, October 5 - 18: multiple SNA shakeups and scandals, Manbij curriculum update, northern Aleppo front stays hot, and more
10/05/24: The SDF’s Manbij Military Council reported that two civilian men in the village of al-Jarad were injured by a ‘thermal rocket’ fired from SNA-controlled Euphrates Shield region. Small scale attacks and clashes occurred along the northern Aleppo front lines throughout the subsequent two weeks, including:
the death of an HRE fighter “while carrying out [his duty]” on October 7th
an October 8th Faylaq al-Sham ATGM strike targeting an excavator near Burj al-Qas
several HRE attacks claimed between October 7 - 9th
the deaths of two children and injuring of three others on October 10th by artillery fire targeting the SDF-controlled village of Tahnah
the death of a Faylaq al-Sham fighter near Kabashin on October 12th
civilian casualty incidents in the Euphrates Shield region caused by SDF or regime rocket fire on October 12th, October 14th, and October 16th
the deaths of two SDF fighters during clashes in the Manbij area on October 13th
the death of an al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah fighter on the Mare‘ front on October 15th
an SAA officer was reportedly killed by Turkish shelling near Arab Hasan, north of Manbij
the death of a senior Asayish cadre in the al-Shahba’ region on the 18th.
10/08/24: Pro-opposition outlet al-Khabour reported that the construction of defensive watchtowers inside SDF-controlled Deir ez-Zour along the Euphrates has continued around the town of al-Shuhail. According to al-Khabour, Americans oversee the construction efforts which will lead to 143 towers in total, aimed at stemming cross-river infiltration attempts from regime-controlled territory. Satellite imagery from August 2024 available on Google Earth Pro (desktop version) shows 13 new defensive positions under construction around the towns of al-Hawayij and Dhiban, located just to the southeast of al-Shuhail. Imagery for the rest of the region has not yet been updated to this point.
Green: defensive positions under construction Aug 2024, red: older defensive position located here. 10/09/24: A Turkish drone strike destroyed a car travelling between the towns of Ahras and Kafr Nasih [exact strike location here] in the al-Shahba’ region.
In possibly related news HRE reported one of its fighters was killed the same day, while Turkish state media announced an undated MIT assassination of two PKK cadres in the Tell Rifa‘at region the following week.
10/09/24: SNA 2nd Legion faction Maghawir al-Sham (al-Furqah 26) announced that the “Abu al-‘Izz Ariha bloc” joined its ranks. Maghawir al-Sham was formed in June 2024 by two Ahrar al-Sham splinter groups: an Afrin-based, Yousef al-Hamawi-led faction that left Ahrar al-Sham and Idlib over leadership disputes in 2022 and only joined the SNA earlier this year, and Abu Haidar Maskanah’s eastern Aleppo-based Ahrar al-Sham Eastern Sector. The Abu al-‘Izz Ariha bloc, known by the kunya of its leader ‘Alaa’ Fahham but previously as al-Liwa’ 315 as well, was formed in 2021 by other defectors from Ahrar al-Sham and operated under the auspices of the 3rd Legion’s al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah until splitting with them two months ago. This news simplifies the ex-Ahrar al-Sham landscape leaving only the group commonly referred to as Ahrar ‘Awlan - commanded by Hussein al-Talib (Abu al-Dahdah Manbij), based outside al-Bab, and affiliated with the 3rd Legion - outside the ranks of Maghawir al-Sham (al-Furqah 26).
Abu al-‘Izz Ariha in 2022 (source) 10/09/24: Turkish and Syrian opposition institutions celebrated the fifth anniversary of Operation Peace Spring, the Turkish-led invasion of northeastern Syria. The operation led to the capture of the wider Tell Abyad and Ras al-‘Ain/Serê Kaniyê regions from the hands of the SDF and the ongoing displacement of thousands of their native inhabitants, before front lines were frozen via agreements reached between Turkey and the US and Turkey and Russia.
10/10/24: The SDF commemorated the ninth anniversary of its founding in October 2015 as an alliance between the YPG/YPJ, Shammar tribal militia Quwwat al-Sanadid, the Syriac Military Council, and several mostly Arab factions at one time affiliated with the opposition.
10/12/24: SyriaTV reported that flow of Syrians displaced by Israel’s assault on Lebanon into SNA-controlled territory via eastern Aleppo’s ‘Aoun al-Dadat crossing continued after a temporary security related pause. Those wishing to enter the region reportedly have to apply first to pass a security check. According to the SIG Minister of Economy as cited by Syria Report 4,900 individuals had crossed ‘Aoun al-Dadat as of October 22nd (reportedly including four families of Evangelical converts from Afrin). Meanwhile the DAANES reported 19,754 individuals had entered its territory via regime-controlled western Syria as of October 17th. By October 14th the UN estimated 276,000 Syrian and Lebanese citizens had entered Syria fleeing the invasion. Various reports have surfaced since accusing different actors of targeting this newly displaced population in a range of abuses.
10/15/24: The SIG Ministry of Defense announced the arrest of a commander in the SNA Border Guard known as Abu Talas on charges of embezzlement and abuse of power. This came after two videos circulated showing Liwa’ Jarabulus commander Abu Talas, or Nour Hayyan Ramadan, shooting unarmed men in the leg at point blank range after they’d been detained attempting to cross the Turkish border. A third video published along with the others appears to show the SNA Border Guard picking up a half disrobed motionless man from Turkish soldiers through a gate in the Turkish border wall (at least two exist in the area). According to the Ministry of Defense statement, which does not mention the shootings, Abu Talas was turned over to the SNA Military Judiciary. The SNA Border Guard was formed in 2022 and includes a handful of brigades staffed by SNA fighters, assigned to sections of the Turkish border with the intention of preventing Syrians from entering while curtailing drug smuggling. Its current overall commander is Ahmad Khalaf, previously the commander of the Military Police in Tell Abyad.
10/14/24: Social media accounts began to circulate video and images allegedly showing new deployment of the regime’s 25th Special Mission Forces Division (formerly “Quwwat al-Nimr”) to the Tel Rifa‘at region. This comes in the context of increased regime bombardment of Idlib and HTS raids of regime frontline positions, along with quite impractical rumors of the front lines opening up again.
10/16/24: SNA coalition al-Quwwah al-Mushtarikah launched an assault on Furqat Suqour al-Shamal’s headquarters at the Hawar Kilis Military Crossing, soon capturing it while sparking intra-SNA clashes within the Afrin and Euphrates Shield regions. This came one month after the SIG Ministry of Defense’s announcement that Suqour al-Shamal was to dissolved, to which the faction responded by joining al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah. What that turn of events led to high tensions and mobilization, large scale clashes were avoided until this most recent bout, occurring between Suqour al-Shamal and al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah on the one hand, and al-Quwwah al-Mushtarikah and fellow 2nd Legion faction Furqat al-Sultan Murad on the other. The defending forces were at a military disadvantage as Suqour al-Shamal is geographically split between northeastern Afrin, the border areas northeast of A‘zaz, and the town of al-Ghandourah, the former pocket isolated from al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah’s stronghold of A‘zaz. Additionally Suqour al-Shamal’s headquarters at Hawar Kilis is sandwiched between facilities operated by al-Quwwah al-Mushtarikah factions Furqat al-Hamzah and Furqat al-Sultan Suleiman Shah and their allies Furqat al-Sultan Murad, all adjacent to one another at the military crossing. A civilian woman was killed in the clashes before a temporary truce was announced during which Syrian Civil Defense evacuated 300 families from the area around Kafr Jannah, the main crossing between largely al-Quwwah al-Mushtarikah-controlled Afrin and al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah-controlled A‘zaz. The following day after reportedly losing much of its territory Furqat Suqour al-Shamal announced that it was dissolving itself while handing over management of the faction to the Ministry of Defense. Katibat al-Hamzah, a Suqour al-Shamal component group based in the Afrini town of Qizilbaşa/al-Ras al-Ahmar, announced it was joining Maghawir al-Sham (al-Furqah 26). Overall this outcome will surely benefit al-Quwwah al-Mushtarikah over their rivals al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah, due to their much better relations with Turkey and the SIG. For more on Suqour al-Shamal’s history see here and here.
al-Quwwah al-Mushtarikah fighters in control of a Suqour al-Shamal checkpoint outside the Afrini town of Sheikh Khorouz (source) 
Known Suqour al-Shamal bases in the Afrin and Euphrates Shield regions (also present in Ras al-‘Ain) 10/16/24: The ENKS reported that three men affiliated with member parties were by the DAANES after their arrests earlier in the year. On the same day opposition-aligned SyriaTV reported that “SDF intelligence” arrested a several officials from the regime’s legal system during a raid on a restaurant in al-Qamishli.
10/17/24: The DAANES Education Commission announced the withdrawal of the newly implemented curriculum in the Manbij district and return to the previous curriculum, following local consultation meetings. The announcement also stated that it had decided: “some materials” will be added to this curriculum, the new curriculum would continue to be taught in some unspecified schools, and that it was “continuing the preparation process for implementing the Autonomous Administration curriculum in the following academic year.” This decision comes following three weeks of demonstrations and school strikes in Manbij protesting the new curriculum over objections relating to ideology and quality. Similar curriculum protests occurred in Deir ez-Zour and al-Raqqah over the course of the week.
An anti-curriculum protest in Manbij City on Oct 11 (source) 10/18/24: SNA 3rd Legion faction al-Furqah 51 announced that smaller brigades Tajammu‘ Ahl al-Diyar, al-Liwa’ al-Khamis, and Kata’ib al-Sajidoun Lillah had joined its ranks. According to Enab Baladi the former faction was part of al-Furqah 50/Ahrar al-Tawhid prior, while the latter two left al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah (two weeks earlier al-Sajidoun reportedly had a falling out with al-Shamiyah commander Abu al-‘Izz Saraqib). Al-Furqah 51, headed by overall commander of the 3rd Legion Muhammed Deiri, is based in the greater A‘zaz region and represents the 4th Division of the Legion - the first three making up al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah, the 5th/35th being Jaysh al-Islam, the 6th/36th Faylaq al-Majd, and the 7th/37th factions Liwa Samarqand and al-Liwa’ 112.
10/18/24: The SNA Military Police published a 41 minute video featuring confessions of an eleven person cell arrested in February 2024 that allegedly carried out targeted and untargeted bombings in Afrin on behalf of the SDF between 2022-2024.
10/18/24: Gunmen affiliated with the “Ahrar ‘Awlan” group of al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah assassinated a member of the SNA Military Police in a parking lot outside the town of al-Ghandourah in eastern Aleppo. The victim, Fawaz Abu Hudhaifah, was an IDP from Damascus reportedly affiliated with Ahrar al-Sham in addition to the Military Police. The incident led various tribal elements to mobilize against Ahrar ‘Awlan at the al-Hamran crossing before al-Jabhah al-Shamiyah announced that it had arrested the perpetrator.
