Syrian rebels announced formation of a new Revolutionary Command Council at a meeting in Gaziantep, Turkey. The RCC claims to represent over 70 rebel militias. It includes both the Free Syrian Army and the Islamic Front [9], as well as more Salafist formations such as Ahrar al-Sham [10]. It excludes the Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front [11]. The RCC charter repeatedly uses the terms "the Syrian people," "civilian," and "revolution"—anathema to the Qaedist ideology of Nusra Front and ISIS. Each RCC affiliate is pledged to contribute at least 100 fighters to a proposed rapid intervention force. The RCC's elected head, Qais al-Sheikh, last week resigned from the Syrian National Coalition [12] in protest of its poor performance. (Al Bawaba [13], Dec. 1)
Days after the RCC meeting, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius called for the US-led coalition against ISIS to aid rebels in Syria's second city Aleppo in holding out against regime forces. "After Kobani, we must save Aleppo," Fabius said, referring to the Syrian border town [14] where the US has carried out dozens of air-strikes to help Kurdish forces resist an ISIS assault. (Al Jazeera [15], Dec. 4)
And the US and Turkey are said to be close to an agreement on a joint military action against ISIS. The Wall Street Journal [16], citing officials from both countries, reported that the deal would allow the US and its partners access to Turkish bases to launch air-strikes. The agreement would also provide for a "protected zone" along the Syria-Turkey border.
So Turkey, after using ISIS to crush or weaken the Rojava Kurds [17], will get its "buffer zone [18]" in nothern Syria. Meanwhile it grooms a "moderate" (sic) Islamist alliance to hold sway over the RCC, giving Erdogan conservative anti-Kurdish partners for the apres-Assad. Nicely done.
