Ali Al Kiylani is a Marxist Syrian militia commander, fighting - TopicsExpress

Ali Al Kiylani is a Marxist Syrian militia commander, fighting alongside the Syrian army against militant groups opposed to president Bashar Al Assad. Kiylani and his group operate mainly in the countryside in northern Lattakia fighting opposition insurgents who cross from Turkey into Syria. The leftist group calls itself the Syrian resistance and says it aims to regain Iskenderun and Kilikia which were incorporated into Turkey after the fall of the Ottoman Empire. The Syrian Resistance, also known as the Popular Front for the Liberation of the Sanjak of Alexandretta is Marxist-Leninist orientated and acknowledges Che Guevera as a symbol of communist resistance. The group was formed in 2011, and their logo is a red star with crossed rifles. Kiylani, who is originally Turkish and also known as Mihrac Ural, used to be part of the Turkish militant faction DHKP-C which claimed responsibility for the attack on US Embassy in Ankara earlier this year. Since the beginning of the Syrian conflict, Ali Al Kiylani, has been an important pro-Damascus militia figure. According to the militia itself the group is composed of 2,000 militants.