Syrian rebel top brass killed in air raid

However, Aron Lund, a Syria expert, said the death of Allouch, who led the Army of Islam since it was founded around four years ago, could amount to “a decapitation strike” for the group.

Plans to evacuate thousands of rebels from the Yarmouk refugee camp in southern Damascus have been put on hold.

The besieged militants include fighters of Islamic State and the Nusra Front, al-Qaeda’s offshoot in Syria.

The efforts are part of a broader objective to improve Mr Assad’s standing among Western governments, which despise him but also see the Islamic State as an increasing menace.

The Observatory said it was unclear in the immediate aftermath whether the airstrike was launched by Syrian or Russian warplanes. It was a blow to the forces fighting against the government of Bashar Assad.

Jaysh al-Islam named Issam al-Buwaydani (also known as Abu Humam) from the city of Douma northeast of Damascus as its new leader. Jaish al-Islam has been running the Eastern Ghouta area since 2013. While Russia supports Assad, and reports have said that many rebels fighting Assad’s regime have also been killed in these strikes.

The combined developments all strengthen Assad’s position as his government prepares for peace talks that the United Nations is planning to convene in Geneva late next month.

Since the Russian intervention late last September Russian air strikes have indeed been focused on such groups rather than ISIS.

His group controls large parts of the Damascus suburbs.

Fears have now sparked among the Damascenes about possible retaliation from the Islam Army for the killing of their leader, amid expectations that fresh and intensified mortar attack could be triggered against Damascus after Alloush’s death.

The killing of Mr Alloush, a controversial figure who helped turn Jaish al-Islam into one of the most organised and powerful rebel groups in Syria, may offer a morale boost to Mr Assad’s beleaguered forces. He has denied holding them, although they were abducted from an area under Army of Islam control.

The group has remained firmly opposed to both Assad and to IS.

Diplomats such as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry have promoted ending the civil war as the most important step in defeating Islamic State fighters and bringing stability to the region.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an independent British-based monitoring group that tracks violence across Syria, said the evacuation had been expected to take place early Saturday but was delayed as there was now no secure territory for the militants to pass through.