The Free Syrian Army on the Golan Heights is coaxing Islamist opposition forces to leave the border area with Israel and fight the Assad regime further east, a Free Syrian Army member told The Times of Israel.

According to the FSA activist, the newly-formed Unified Free Syrian Army under the command of Brigadier General Ibrahim Fahd Al-Nu’aimi has managed in recent weeks to convince members of the al-Qaida-affiliated al-Nusra Front to leave Syrian villages adjacent to the Israeli border and moved to fight government forces in the western outskirts of Damascus.

In al-Qseibah, for instance, al-Nusra had planned to set up a religious institution to spread the ideology of al-Qaida but was dissuaded by the FSA from doing so, according to The Times of Israel.

The opposition member also told TOI that if properly funded, the new Unified Free Syrian Army would prove more than capable of defending Israel’s border and meeting the expectations of the West.

“Today, the Unified Free Syrian Army is attempting to emerge as the exclusive force in the area. It understands the requirements of neighboring countries and of residents in peace, stability and development,” he told TOI. “Hundreds are approaching us daily, and we have recruited about 10,000 men who have registered their names in Quneitra and Daraa, though they receive no salaries and can defect at any moment. We aren’t receiving as much funding from the West as the Military Council or the Syria Revolutionaries Council. We need vehicles, we need fuel, and we need salaries for the soldiers.”

Split within Israeli Arab party

In Israel, the Balad party (Hebrew acronym for National Democratic Assembly) – known for its firebrand anti-Zionist lawmakers like Hanin Zoabi – has spilt in two, after the party officially shifted its support away from Syrian President Bashar Assad.

The new offshoot movement – Kapach (or Struggle) – says the party's support for the anti-Assad rebels stems from foreign interests led by former MK and party strongman, Azmi Bishara, the Ynet web site reported.

Bishara, who was forced to flee Israel in 2007 ahead of a police investigation of allegations that he aided Hezbollah, lives in Qatar, which is a strong supporter of the Syrian rebels. Kapach claims his Qatari bosses are trying to get involved in party affairs.

"We are for Syria and its regime, which is forced to fight against criminal and brutal attacks. Syria is the only Arab nation which has preserved Arab nationalism … while other nations send fighters to fight the regime under the claim they want to create a democracy, but these are people who slaughter innocent civilians," Kapach leader and former MK Mohammed Miari told Ynet.