Leading US-backed Syrian rebel group Hazm dissolved

One of the main US-backed rebel groups in Syria dissolved itself following weeks of clashes with al-Qaeda's local franchise, activists said on Sunday, in a blow to western efforts to strengthen groups able to fight the growth of jihadi forces in the region.

The rebel group, known as the Hazm movement, was seen as one of the most critical future partners for any ground campaign trained and backed by the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, known as Isis. Hazm, which numbers more than 5,000 fighters, was the first group to receive TOW anti-tank missiles from Washington.

The group has for weeks been locked in battle with Jabhat al-Nusra, an al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria, with the two sides killing some of each other's leaders and imprisoning fighters. This led the Sham Front, the main rebel umbrella group, to demand an end to the internecine fighting.

Syrian opposition groups feared the clashes between the two groups was hurting their ability to fend off an offensive by President Bashar al-Assad's forces, which have been trying to put the city of Aleppo under siege. If it succeeded, rebels would lose their last stronghold in a large Syrian city.

A statement with Hazm's stamp and logo was circulated by activists on social media on Sunday, although none of the group's members were available to confirm the decision to dissolve.

"Given what is happening on the Syrian front, offences by the criminal regime with its cronies against Syria as a whole and Aleppo specifically, and in an effort to stem the bloodshed of the fighters, the Hazm movement announces its dissolution," the statement said.

Jabhat al-Nusra forces have advanced quickly in recent months into areas of northwestern Syria held by more secular, western-backed groups such as Hazm and the Syrian Revolutionaries Front, which is now nearly defunct.

Opposition leaders say part of the blame lies with the US-led coalition. Bombing raids against Isis positions have killed Syria civilians, which has hit support for the US-backed groups and given Jabhat al-Nusra fighters justification to target them.

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