SUMMARY

The Islamic Front was at its formation on 22 November 2013 likely the largest coalition of factions in Syria, connecting prominent groups such as Ahrar al-Sham, Jaysh al-Islam and al-Tawhid Brigade under a unified command structure. Soon after its formation it ended up in conflict with IS, which escalated into open warfare in January 2014 following the kidnapping and murder of a commander in Ahrar al-Sham by IS in late December 2013. During this conflict, the largest outbreak of non-state violence to date in the Syrian Civil War, the Islamic Front at times fought independently against IS, but more commonly jointly with other groups. Prominent joint operations were IS - Islamic Front, Mujahideen Army, SRF, IS - Islamic Front, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, Liwa al-Jihad fi Sabeel Allah, Liwa Thuwar ar-Raqqa, Authenticity and Development Front, Islamic Front, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham - IS and IS - Islamic Front, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, to name a few. IS is often held to be the prime suspect for an explosion, thought to have been set of a suicide bomber, that killed Hassan Aboud, leader of Islamic Front](/#/actor/5575) and of Ahrar al-Sham, and many others, on 9 September 2014.