Clashes for Abu Ahmad al - Jumaa

Just before noon on August 2 , in the Lebanese
border town of Arsal , the Lebanese Armed Forces
(LAF) arrested Abu Ahmad al - Jumaa, a Syrian rebel
commander who had recently pledged allegiance to
the extremist Islamic State group. His arrest sparked
a number of clashes in the largely Sunni Bekaa town
between his supporters and Lebanese security
forces stationed in the area . But Jumaa 's story and
the significance of the August 2 events have
repercussions beyond the small Lebanese town.
Jumaa had been a commander in the Free Syrian
Army ( FSA), heading up a small rebel group called
Liwa Fajr al - Islam . He and his men fought in Qusayr
throughout the spring of 2013 . When the town fell to
Hezbollah fighters and the Syrian regime , he, like
many others , headed to Yabroud. Ahmad al -Qusair ,
a media activist based in the mountainous Qalamoun
region, says that Jumaa was known for his
manliness and righteousness .
In March , Yabroud fell under the control of the Syrian
Arab Army . Jumaa , his family and his fighters moved
to the outskirts of Arsal, in the no -man 's -land
between Lebanon and Syria .
The area has been rife with military activity since
Yabroud' s takeover. Rebel forces had been fighting
Syrian army units, supported by Hezbollah, over
individual towns in the Qalamoun region for months .
Battles have recently escalated with higher reported
death tolls for both sides . Anti-government forces
had been using this area, including the Arsal
outskirts , to regroup and recuperate between battles .
But the arid hills outside of Arsal have also become
home for at least tens of thousands of Syrian
refugees , many from Homs and the Qalamoun
region, who have fled the fighting in Syria . Hundreds
of tents are packed close together just beyond the
last Lebanese army checkpoint in Wadi Hmeid .
Most refugees are afraid of passing through the
army post into Arsal and are therefore stranded in
the border area. With his family now settled in a
makeshift camp , Jumaa was reportedly wary of the
area' s clashes spreading to the refugees ' tents .
Sources close to him stress that he viewed an attack
on the Lebanese army posts around Arsal at the time
as an act that would put refugees in danger .
When a group of fighters sought to attack the army
checkpoints - in revenge for the LAF' s perceived
facilitation of Hezbollah' s intervention in Syria -
Jumaa confronted them and successfully prevented
an escalation. As a source close to him said, "He
refused to let the Lebanese army be a target. "
Now, however , it seems his alliances have shifted . A
few weeks ago , Jumaa pledged allegiance to the
Islamic State group' s leader, Abu Bakr al -Baghdadi .
Since then , sources say , he has begun dressing fully
in black and has grown a considerable beard. More
dangerously , Jumaa had begun speaking
increasingly of the Lebanese army ' s complicity in
Hezbollah' s actions in Syria . By letting Hezbollah
pass through border points unchallenged , he argued,
the Lebanese army would inevitably make itself a
target for Syrian rebels in the area.
Still , fighters close to Jumaa say his decision to
pledge allegiance to the Islamic State was borne out
of strategic interest, not an ideological shift .
Shortages in supplies and ammunitions have
severely affected the fighting capabilities of FSA
battalions, including Jumaa' s Liwa Fajr al -Islam . By
aligning himself with Baghdadi , Jumaa sought to
access the Islamic State ' s steady flow of food ,
weapons , and ammunition, and he has already begun
to reap the benefits. Since pledging , his relatively
small group of fighters grew from around 40 to over
300 . Jumaa is probably the first of many to switch ,
as several leaders of other FSA battalions in
Qalamoun have expressed that their desperation on
the battlefield may push them to pledge allegiance to
the Islamic State .
Jumaa 's arrest has been a game -changer . Besides
sparking ongoing clashes in Arsal , where a number
of casualties have been reported, his capture has
given his supporters the needed justification for
specifically targeting the Lebanese security forces .
His fighters have allegedly taken a number of
hostages , at least two of whom are members of the
security forces.
In retaliation , the Lebanese army has begun shelling
rebel positions in the outskirts of the town with
support from Syrian army helicopters . As the
violence escalates, Arsal ' s community leaders are
adamant that this isn't just about Jumaa.
" This is about who controls the border, " Abu Ibrahim,
a former LAF member and resident of Arsal , said to
us in an interview. Abu Ibrahim had been working to
calm the tensions between rebel groups and army
units stationed in Arsal , but as clashes continued, it
seemed his initiative wasn 't gaining traction.
He worried that developments in Arsal would affect
other parts of Lebanon, and linked Jumaa 's arrest
and the ensuing clashes to the broader battle for the
Qalamoun mountains. "Whoever controls Arsal ,
which makes up 5 percent of Lebanon's territory ,
controls the border with Syria ," he concluded .