New women's brigade established in Aleppo to halt regime's advance

The women's brigade, made up of 13 fighters, was formed in order to defend against attacks from the Syrian regime and ISIS.

By MAAYAN GROISMAN
Updated: FEBRUARY 14, 2016 22:26
The Liberals of northern Aleppo countryside
A new brigade composed of 13 armed Syrian women residing in Aleppo's countryside announced its formation on Friday in a video that was spread on Arabic social media.
In the video, the brigade, calling itself "The Liberals of northern Aleppo countryside," declared that it was formed in order to defend the countryside from attacks of the Syrian regime, the Kurdish PKK and ISIS.
The brigade's spokesman announced: "[We], The Liberals of northern Aleppo countryside, are prepared to resist any attack against our religion, our honor and our country."
In addition, she called on more Syrian men to fight for Aleppo and not sit idly by while the city is attacked by the regime, claiming that jihad is a personal obligation for everyone.
The group's announcement comes amid considerable advancement of Kurdish YPG forces into the city of Azaz, located on the Turkish border. Following this advancement, Turkey's Air force shelled YPG positions in Azaz, arousing American anger.
On the other hand, ISIS also has its own women's brigade – al-Khansaa Brigade, which was formed in Raqqa in early 2014. This brigade serves as the all-female moral police of ISIS, but it also plays an important role in ISIS fighting, as gradually more women are filling "more operative" roles.