18 March Division

The 18 March Division (Arabic: فرقة 18 آذار) was a rebel group part of the Free Syrian Army that is active during the Syrian Civil War. It was named after the 18 March 2011 protests in Daraa. It was created on 11 April 2013 by colonel Mohammed Khaled al-Duhni out of three units. On 18 July 2013, the Southern Tawhid Brigade, one of the affiliated groups, left the 18 March Division following internal disputes.[1] It joined the Southern Front on 14 February 2014.[4]

18 March Division
Arabic: فرقة 18 آذار
LeadersCol. Mohammed Khaled al-Duhni[1]
Hosam Abazid †[2]
Dates of operation11 April 2013[1] – 31 July 2018
Group(s)
  • Martyr Houran
  • Liberation of Houran[1]
  • Engineering and Rocket Battalion[3]
  • Southern Tawhid Brigade (former)
Active regionsDaraa Governorate[1]
Part ofFree Syrian Army
OpponentsSyrian Armed Forces

National Defense Force
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Al-Nusra Front
Battles and warsSyrian Civil War

History

In April 2015, after 5 Southern Front groups unilaterally rejected all forms of cooperation with the al-Nusra Front, the 18 March Division clashed with al-Nusra in the Dar'a al-Balad district of Daraa. Conflicting reports stated that the al-Nusra Front captured a member of the Southern Tawhid Brigade and threw a grenade at the latter group's headquarters.[5]

On 28 September 2016, one of the group's field commanders, Hosam Abazid, was assassinated in the eastern Daraa countryside. Hosam Abazid was previously a member of the al-Nusra Front, then defected to the Southern Tawhid Brigade, then to the Islamic Muthanna Movement, and re-defected back to the 18 March Division.[2]

See also

References
  1. Lucas. "A MODERN HISTORY OF THE FREE SYRIAN ARMY IN DARAA" (PDF). Foreign Military Studies Office. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-22. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  2. "18-March Division's commander killed in Daraa, no group claimed responsibility". Zaman alwsl. 28 September 2016.
  3. "The Moderate Rebels: A Growing List of Vetted Groups Fielding BGM-71 TOW Anti-Tank Guided Missiles". 8 May 2015.
  4. "Does the "Southern Front" Exist?". Carnegie. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  5. "FSA moves against Nusra in south Syria". Now News. 14 April 2015. Archived from the original on 18 December 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2017.


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