Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — Al Qaida has regained most of its strongholds amid the
Saudi-sponsored rebel offensive in Syria.

Opposition sources said Al Qaida’s Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
has rebounded from an offensive by a Saudi-sponsored campaign, which began
on Jan. 3. They said ISIL has regained many of the strongholds lost to the
Islamic Front, particularly around the northeastern provincial capital of
Raqa.

“ISIL was initially surprised by the attacks, but within a week mobilized and regained control over just about everything it lost,” a source said.

The sources said ISIL encountered its greatest success in Raqa, the only major city still outside the control of the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad. They said ISIL drove out Saudi-sponsored militia units from the city and suburbs. ISIL has also been conducting operations in the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib.

ISIL has been aided by the refusal of a key member of the Islamic Front to participate in the offensive. The member was identified as Ahrar Al Sham,
deemed a leading Islamic militia with links to Al Qaida.

“ISIL still controls a significant number of fighters, particularly in northern Syria,” the source said.

At one point, the Islamic Front offensive included Al Qaida’s Nusra
Front for the Defense of the Levant, which participated in the assault on
Raqa. The sources said Nusra has withdrawn many of its units from the
Saudi-sponsored campaign.

At the same time, ISIL has retaliated against Islamic Front and the
Western-sponsored Free Syrian Army. The sources said ISIL conducted about 20
major suicide car bombings as well as numerous squad attacks on rebel
strongholds near the Syrian border with Turkey.

The Syrian Observatory of Human Rights has reported that 1,000 fighters
were killed in the offensive against ISIL. Syrian Observatory said most of
the casualties, 351, stemmed from the Saudi militias, with 246 ISIL fighters
killed as well. At least 100 fighters from Nusra and Ahrar were killed.

“The battles were very fierce and both sides were secretive about the
total human losses,” Syrian Observatory director Rami Abdul Rahman said.

The sources said ISIL has sought to return to Aleppo, the largest city
in Syria. They said ISIL still controls supply routes throughout the north
until Turkey while the Syrian Army exploited the fighting to advance toward
Aleppo.

“The [Islamic Front] rebels lack the organization and the firepower to
win,” Abdullah Faraj, a member of the pro-Western rebel Syrian National
Coalition, said.

Still, Islamic Front has issued a warning for ISIL to end attacks and
free hundreds of prisoners. ISIL has been executing many of the captured
rebels.

“We are giving ISIL a deadline of no more than 24 hours to stop its
abuses, free the prisoners and hand over its weapons,” Islamic Front said on
Jan. 14.

  Ahrar Al Sham, Al Qaida’s ISIL takes back Raqa, Free Syrian Army, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Nusra Front, only Syrian city still outside of Assad’s control