The Alawite Insurgency in Syria: Interview with Fawj Azra'il al-Jabal

While ‘Coastal Shield’ is the most familiar brand of Alawite insurgent groups that have arisen since the fall of the Assad regime, there are other Alawite insurgent formations as well such as ‘Fawj Azra’il al-Jabal’ (‘Azra’il of the Mountain Regiment’), led by Abu Ali Sumer, who was part of Suhayl al-Hasan’s Russian-backed ‘Tiger Forces’ prior to the fall of the regime.

Unsurprisingly, a number of observers will be inclined to designate this group, which has recently come to wider attention, an example of ‘regime remnants.’ However, I am personally skeptical of this label and its wider application more generally (for reasons I will explain in a subsequent post). If observers want to understand the outlook and views of these Alawite insurgent groups, it is actually not too difficult to reach out to them. Indeed, I was able to briefly interview Abu Ali Sumer today and ask him about his group, his aims and his outlook on the situation in Syria. In fact I suspect that some of what Abu Ali says would likely annoy some Westerners who supported the Assad regime on the basis of ideological identification with ‘anti-imperialism’ and the ‘axis of resistance.’

Emblem of Fawj Azra’il al-Jabal. The emblem includes the flag of the old ‘Alawite State’ during the French mandate and features part of the flag of old Syria. The number 313 is popular among Alawite insurgent groups.