Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahri has ordered its main jihadist faction in Syria to be abolished.
Zawahri made the order in an audio message aired on Al-Jazeera TV network on November 8.
In the statement, he said the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, an Al-Qaeda branch fighting against the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, had been disbanded.
He added that the Al-Nusra Front is the only Al-Qaeda representative fighting in Syria and reports to him.
The tape appears to be confirmation of a letter, allegedly written by Zawahri, reported by Al-Jazeera in June.
Zawahri added that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, "made a mistake" by forming the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant without asking for permission from Zawahri.
Zawahri made the order in an audio message aired on Al-Jazeera TV network on November 8.
In the statement, he said the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, an Al-Qaeda branch fighting against the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, had been disbanded.
He added that the Al-Nusra Front is the only Al-Qaeda representative fighting in Syria and reports to him.
The tape appears to be confirmation of a letter, allegedly written by Zawahri, reported by Al-Jazeera in June.
Zawahri added that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, "made a mistake" by forming the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant without asking for permission from Zawahri.
