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| Syrian Nusra Front announces split from al-Qaeda | Syrian Nusra Front announces split from al-Qaeda |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Syrian jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusra, also known as the Nusra Front, has announced it has split from al-Qaeda. | |
| Leader Abu Mohammed al-Julani, in his first recorded message, said its new name would be Jabhat Fateh al-Sham [Front for the Conquest of Syria]. | |
| It is understood the group hopes to form closer alliances with other Islamist groups fighting in Syria. | It is understood the group hopes to form closer alliances with other Islamist groups fighting in Syria. |
| Al-Qaeda's second-in-command has previously given the group's backing to the move. | |
| In the recording aired by al-Jazeera's Arabic news channel, Mr al-Julani thanked the "commanders of al-Qaeda for having understood the need to break ties". | |
| Analysts say the Nusra Front decided to rebrand itself after the US and Russia stepped up their military efforts against the group. | |
| The US has listed it as a terrorist organisation and it was excluded from February's cessation of hostilities agreement. | |
| Al-Nusra first announced its existence in a video posted online in 2012, some months after Syria's conflict began. |