Army of the Revolution

Not to be confused with Army of Revolutionaries.

Army of the Revolution
Arabic: جيش الثورة
Jaysh al-Thawra
Leaders
  • Ahmed Ibrahim al-Qasim (overall commander since December 2017, Mu'tazz Billah Army commander) [1]
  • Suleiman al-Sharif (Abu Kanan) (overall commander until December 2017) [1]
  • Capt. Iyad Qadr[2] (former overall commander and Muhajireen and Ansar Brigade commander)
  • Lt. Col. Mohammed Hassan Salama (Dawn of Islam Division commander)[3]
  • Capt. Bara Nabulsi[4] (Mu'tazz Billah Army commander, since September 2017)
  • Omar Sharif[2] (infantry commander)
  • Abu Ali Mustafa[2] (anti-armour unit commander)
  • Firas Abu Hamza[2] (artillery unit commander)
  • Abu Bakr al-Hasan[2] (official spokesman)
  • Col. Khalid Nabulsi[4] (Mu'tazz Billah Army commander, until September 2017)
  • Abdullah al-Sharif †[5] (engineering battalion commander)
  • Shaher al-Zubani †[6] (Martyr Walid Qaisi Brigade commander)
  • Maher al-Masri (Abu Hudhayfah al-Shami) †[7] (Yarmouk Army commander)
Dates of operation4 December 2016 – 31 July 2018
Active regions
Size7,500+ fighters[2]
Part of Free Syrian Army
Allies
Opponents
Battles and warsSyrian Civil War
Websitehttps://twitter.com/althawraarmy?lang=en

The Army of the Revolution (Arabic: جيش الثورة; Jaysh al-Thawrā) was a Syrian rebel alliance affiliated with the Southern Front of the Free Syrian Army. It was composed of five FSA factions which mainly operated in the Daraa Governorate in southwestern Syria. One of its commanders stated that the group is a "temporary operations room" due to the separation between western and eastern Daraa, and that the "door is open" for other groups to join the alliance.[8]

Member groups

  • Yarmouk Army
    • United Sham Front
  • Mu'tazz Billah Army
    • Martyr Walid Qaisi Brigade
  • Muhajireen and Ansar Brigade
  • Hasan ibn Ali Brigade
  • Dawn of Islam Division
  • Free Nawa Forces[9][10]
    • Free Nawa Brigade
    • Bani Umayya Brigade
    • Farouq Brigade
    • Omar Mukhtar Brigade
    • Southern Company
    • Gaza Houran Brigade
    • Clear Victory Brigade
    • Muhammad the Conqueror Brigade
    • Soldiers of Islam Brigade
    • Martyr Ahmad al-Awad Brigade
    • Omar ibn al-Khattab Brigade
    • Lions of the South Brigade
    • Technical Battalion

Yarmouk Army

Not to be confused with Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade.

The Yarmouk Army (Arabic: جيش اليرموك; transliteration: Jaysh al-Yarmouk), originally known as the Yarmouk Brigade,[11] is a prominent FSA rebel group operating in the Quneitra and Daraa governorates.[12] The group is one of the units that has received BGM-71 TOW missiles.[3] It joined the Southern Front on 14 February 2014[13] and the Hawks of the South coalition on 27 December 2014.[14]

The Yarmouk Army was described by Reuters in 2014 as "one of the strongest groups in the south."[15]

The group participated in the Battle of Nasib Border Crossing in April 2015, where the Syrian rebels took control of it.[16]

The group took part in the Daraa and As-Suwayda offensive (June 2015).[17]

In January 2016, the United Sham Front joined the group.[18]

The group clashed with the Youth of Sunna Forces in June 2017.[19]

Mu'tazz Billah Army

Not to be confused with al-Mu'tasim Brigade.

The Mu'tazz Billah Army (Arabic: جيش المعتز بالله; transliteration: Jaysh al-Mu'tazz Billah), formerly called the Mu'tazz Billah Brigade (Arabic: لواء المعتز بالله; transliteration: Liwa al-Mu'tazz Billah), named after al-Mu'tazz, is a FSA group active in Daraa. It also received TOW missiles from the Military Operations Center based in Jordan. The group has clashed with the Islamic Muthanna Movement. It was also previously part of the Daraa Military Council.[3]

On 11 September 2017, Captain Bara Nabulsi was appointed as the general commander of the Mu'tazz Billah Army, replacing Colonel Khalid Nabulsi. Col. Nabulsi was previously the commander of the Southern Front's joint command operations room in 2014.[4]

Muhajireen and Ansar Brigade

Not to be confused with the jihadist group Liwa al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar.

The Emigrants and Helpers Brigade (Arabic: لواء المهاجرون والأنصار; transliteration: Liwa al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar) was one of the earliest FSA groups formed in the Daraa Governorate. The group is affiliated with the Supreme Military Council and has received TOW and HJ-8 anti-tank missiles. It is one of the members of the Daraa Military Council. The group is led by Captain Iyad Khaddour and Khalid Fathallah, the former of which became the overall commander of the Army of the Revolution.[3]

Hasan ibn Ali Brigade

Dawn of Islam Division

The Dawn of Islam Division (Arabic: فرقة فجر الإسلام; transliteration: Firqat Fajr al-Islam) is a Syrian rebel group operating in the Uthman and Tafas districts of Daraa city as well as in Busra al-Harir in the north-east of Daraa Governorate. Formed in February 2013, the group is led by Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Hassan Salama.[20] It is a merger between the Dawn of Islam Brigade and a number of smaller rebel groups. The group also received BGM-71 TOW anti-tank missiles.[3] On 13 April 2015, the Dawn of Islam Division joined a number of other Southern Front groups in renouncing all ties with the al-Nusra Front. On 3 June 2017, it joined the Army of the Revolution.[21]

History

Following the surrender and integration of some former rebels into government-allied structures (like the Russian-formed 5th Legion or Military Security Branch), former commanders of the Army of the Revolution were targets of assassination attempts and killings by unknown persons in the volatile post-reconciliation Daraa environment. Commander Mahmoud al-Bardan was the target of an assassination attempt in February 2019, and former member Yousef Mohammad al-Hashish was shot and killed in December[22]

References

  1. ^ a b "Syrian War Daily – 3rd of December 2017". 3 December 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f @Syria_Rebel_Obs (5 December 2016). "INFOGRAPHIC EXCLUSIVE - Creation of the most powerful FSA - Southern Front faction : Jaysh al-Thawra" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ^ a b c d e "THE MODERATE REBELS: A GROWING LIST OF VETTED GROUPS FIELDING BGM-71 TOW ANTI-TANK GUIDED MISSILES". Hasan Mustafas. 5 August 2015.
  4. ^ a b c "The appointment of a new commander of the army (Mu'taz Billah)". All4Syria. 11 September 2017.
  5. ^ "(Army of the Revolution) battalion commander mourns engineering in the countryside of the eastern shield". All4Syria. 17 June 2017.
  6. ^ "The killing of a military commander in the army of Mu'taz Billah". Al Etihad Press. 6 May 2017. Archived from the original on 2 March 2019. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
  7. ^ ~ Joško Barić (13 December 2017). "Syrian War Daily – 13th of December 2017 | Syrian War Daily". Syrianwardaily.wordpress.com. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  8. ^ "Four factions constitute a "revolution army alliance" in the countryside of Daraa". Enab Baladi. 4 December 2016.
  9. ^ "YouTube". YouTube. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  10. ^ "A number of rebel groups in Nawa merge to form the Free Nawa Forces, part of the Army of the Revolution, Southern Front : syriancivilwar". Reddit.com. 6 May 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  11. ^ "Is the Islamic State Establishing Itself in Qalamoun?". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 22 December 2014. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  12. ^ "Syrian rebels seize Jordan crossing from govt control: rebel, security source". Reuters. 1 April 2015. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
  13. ^ Aron Lund (21 March 2014). "Does the "Southern Front" Exist?". Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Archived from the original on 22 March 2014. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  14. ^ "العقيد "الدهني" تشكيل تحالف "صقور الجنوب" خطوة نحو توحيد فصائل حوران". Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  15. ^ Tom Perry (13 November 2014). "Syria rebels in south emerge as West's last hope as moderates crushed elsewhere". Reuters. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  16. ^ "Syrian rebels seize Jordan crossing from government: rebel, security source". Reuters. Yahoo News. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  17. ^ Patrick McDonnell; Nabih Bulos (21 June 2015). "Syrian military and Druze allies join forces to fend off 'terrorists'". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  18. ^ "The integration of the unified front with Sham Yarmouk Army". RFS Media Office. 24 January 2016. Archived from the original on 26 December 2016. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  19. ^ "مواجهات بين فصائل درعا تزامنًا مع اقتراب معركة المدينة". Enab Baladi (in Arabic). 12 June 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
  20. ^ "A MODERN HISTORY OF THE FREE SYRIAN ARMY IN DARAA" (PDF). Foreign Military Studies Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2014. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
  21. ^ "Band (the dawn of Islam) to join the Alliance (Army of the Revolution)". All4Syria. 3 June 2017.
  22. ^ wael.m (25 February 2019). "Controlled by the Syrian Army, Daraa is a Scene to Rampant Insecurity and Mass Assassinations". Syrians for Truth and Justice. Retrieved 13 December 2025.
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