Army of Aleppo

The Jaysh Halab (Arabic: جيش حلب, lit. 'Army of Aleppo') was a coalition of Syrian rebel groups based in rebel-held areas inside the city of Aleppo, Syria. The coalition was created by Hashim al-Sheikh, the former general commander of Ahrar al-Sham with the intent of unifying various rebel groups in Aleppo.^[1] After the announcement, nothing was heard of the group until December 2016.

Army of Aleppo
جيش حلب Jaysh Halab
Leaders	Hashim al-Sheikh ("Abu Jaber")[1] (February 2016) Abu Abdul Rahman Noor †[2] Omar Abdul-Razaq ("Abu Bashar al-Mara")(overall commander, since December 2016) Abu al-Abd Ashidaa[3] (Emir, since December 2016 - also heads Ashida'a Mujahideen Brigade)[4][2][5]
Dates of operation	February 2016 – ? (first group) 1 December 2016 – 21 December 2016 (second group)
Headquarters	Aleppo, Syria
Active regions	Aleppo, Syria
Allies	Army of Conquest Fatah Halab Jabhat Ansar al-Din
Opponents	Syrian Armed Forces Syrian Democratic Forces[1]
Battles and wars	Syrian Civil War Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016) Northern Aleppo offensive (February 2016) Aleppo offensive (November–December 2016)
Preceded by Fatah Halab (became the 2nd iteration of Jaysh al-Halab, southeastern Aleppo)

Initial member groups

The joint operations room consisted of both Sunni Islamist and Salafist factions and some Free Syrian Army groups. On its formation on 6 February 2016, the former Ahrar al-Sham commander issued an ultimatum that ordered 15 rebel factions to join the group within 72 hours.^[1]

• Ahrar al-Sham
• Northern Division
• 16th Division
• 1st Regiment
• Mountain Hawks Brigade
• Sultan Murad Division
• Levant Front
• Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement
• Fastaqim Union
• Muntasir Billah Brigade

Re-activation

On 1 December 2016, during the Aleppo offensive, all rebel groups in southeastern Aleppo reportedly merged into the coalition replacing Fatah Halab in southeastern Aleppo.^[6] A new commander, Abu Abdul Rahman Noor was named.^[2] On 9 December a new emir was named, Abu Ashida'a.^[3]

The 2nd iteration of the group includes:^[7]

• 1st Regiment
• Army of Mujahideen
• Elite Islamic Battalions
• Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement
• Sham Legion
• Levant Front
• Sultan Murad Division
  • Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror Brigade
• Ahrar al-Sham
• Abu Amara Battalions^[8]
• Jaysh al-Islam
• Ashida'a Mujahideen Brigade (headed by Abu al-Abd Ashidaa)
• Karm al-Jabal Martyrs Battalion^[9]