Interview with the Commander of the “New Army of Syria” with JFL Observatory

We are dealing with the captives in accordance with international law and treaties, There are lecture attended by our members for orienting them towards the international law of human rights.

Lieutenant Mohannad Al Talla Commander of the “New Army of Syria”, interviewed by JFLDZ

What is your evaluation for advancement of the Army and defeating ISIS in different locations?

ISIS is an organization that is not to be underestimated and many fighting fronts shall be opened against them in order to scatter their forces and plunge their leaders into chaos. In fact and during the battle of Al Tanaf crossing point, US-led coalition warplanes have paved the way, and our forces started to target the area with mortar shells. That what led to ISIS members fled. None of our members were injured and the operation was accomplished successfully.

What is the further strategy of the Army concerning the military operations in Deir Ezzor ?

The first step in our strategy is to liberate completely the province of Deir Ezzor by selecting the start point. We shall work on securing the Syrian-Iraqi borders for the side of Deir Ezzor by establishing checkpoints with permanent communication among them.

How the Army will deal with the civilians and the activities of the civil society after liberating the Syrian cities?

In the next phase, the Army will control populated cities, so we are working on preparing civil staff for administrating the liberated areas, and we will empower the qualified people throughout making workshops for serving the civilians. We started to formulate a plant for supporting the civic forces for implementing their service programs after liberation. Furthermore, we will prevent any armed actions inside cities and populated areas. We will participate with the civic forces to establish courts and police apparatus. We face a plenty of difficulties in this concern due to the communication.

The “Syrian Democratic Forces” is advancing towards Deir Ezzor, what is your opinion regarding that and is there any coordination with it?

There no coordination with SDF and we will encounter whoever practice any kind of tyranny against the Syrian people. We will not allow partitioning our country or cutting out any of the Syrian lands. We will keep our country unified.

Concerning the captives, how do you treat them and based on what ?

We treat them according to the international law and treaties. We don’t practice “beheading” or any similar behavior. Until now, the Army has no captives.

What is your attitude towards the laws of human rights, and do you train or direct your members on the international agreements of this concern?

We support all human rights along with the international agencies who work in this field. There are lecture attended by our members for orienting them towards the international law of human rights.

Have you done any procedures related to civic life in future that accompany your military action?

We are working evaluate the current situation in order to know how diagnose the problem and tackle it. In Al Mayadin, Al Ishara, and Al Boukmal cities for instance, we are working on preparing an after liberation plan for re-operating the vital facilities such as hospitals and bakeries. The Army includes, in addition to military forces, the political body along with the civil body. One of the tasks of the civil body, is to evaluate the needs and the shortage in all facilities.

What are your procedures for avoiding revenge cases in the area after defeating ISIS?

For reducing the future revenge behavior among tribes and big families in Deir Ezzor, we are trying to work with effective figures in order to help us for prevent any revenge actions. But until now, we are not satisfied with the current situation.

Is there any collaboration between you and the rest of the fighting groups? And are there condition for accepting people or groups to join the Army?

We accept all former FSA members, all who work in the spirit of nationality. There is a collaboration with some groups of the eastern side of Syria such as “Usus Al Sharqia”. But in the north, until now we could not find a group who work independently away from agendas.

Finally, I would ask our people in Deir Ezzor to be optimistic and collaborative. We will fight terrorism and dictatorship. We would ask our God to help us in liberating the area in the coming months.