US-backed militant group dissolves self in Syria

Iran Press TV

Mon Mar 2, 2015 9:58AM

A major Washington-backed militant group operating in Syria has dissolved itself shortly after the United States and Turkey launched a program aimed at training militants to fight Damascus and ISIL militants operating in the country.

The Hazm movement on Sunday announced its dissolution after weeks of clashes with al-Qaeda-linked militants and Syrian army forces.

The militant group was seen as one of the main possible future partners of the thousands of so-called moderate militants to be trained by Washington and Ankara in their train-and-equip program.

The US and Turkey signed a deal to train and arm the militants following months-long talks on February 19.

The Hazm movement, which has about 5,000 members, was the first militant group to receive US TOW anti-tank rockets, last year.

On April 7, 2014, Israel's Debkafile website reported that two Syrian militant groups had been supplied with advanced US weapons, including armor-piercing and optically-guided BGM-71 TOW missiles, thanks to the Pentagon.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said earlier that Saudi Arabia and Qatar had also announced they would be hosting a train-and-equip program.

Turkey has repeatedly been accused of supporting the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) and the ISIL terrorist group, which has been carrying out acts of terror in Syria since June 2014.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since March 2011. The US and its regional allies -- especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey -- are supporting the militants operating inside the Arab country.

The violence, fueled by Takfiri groups, has so far claimed the lives of over 210,000 people, latest reports show.

Over 3.8 million Syrians have left their country since the beginning of the crisis. More than 7.2 million Syrians have also become internally displaced, according to the UN.

SZH/NN/HRB