Jabhat al-Nusra

(Newser) - The head of Jabhat al-Nusra, a jihadist group at the forefront of Syria's civil war, has pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda honcho Ayman al-Zawahiri. What that means isn't exactly crystal clear at this point. While Al-Qaeda in Iraq says the groups have merged under the snappy title of the...

(Newser) - Syrian rebels, fighting alongside Islamist militants, captured a regime air defense base near Aleppo today after an overnight battle, Haaretz reports. The group, dubbed Jabhat al-Nusra, has ties to al-Qaeda, and has claimed responsibility for a number of bombings since the uprising began. Rebels were also fighting today to hold...