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Oliver Holmes and Alexander Dziadosz<\/strong> During a 10-day journey through rebel-held territory in Syria, Reuters journalists found that radical Islamist units are sidelining more moderate groups that do not share the Islamists\u2019 goal of establishing a supreme religious leadership in the country.<\/p>\n The moderates, often underfunded, fragmented and chaotic, appear no match for Islamist units, which include fighters from organizations designated \u201cterrorist\u201d by the United States.<\/p>\n The Islamist ascendancy has amplified the sectarian nature of the war between Sunni Muslim rebels and the Shi\u2019ite supporters of Assad. It also presents a barrier to the original democratic aims of the revolt and calls into question whether the United States, which announced practical support for the rebels last week, can ensure supplies of weapons go only to groups friendly to the West. <!– <\/p>\n –><\/p>\n This article was posted: Wednesday, June 19, 2013 at 1:38 pm<\/p>\n Tags: foreign affairs<\/a>, terrorism<\/a>, war<\/a><\/p>\n
reuters.com<\/a>
June 19, 2013<\/p>\n
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