What is the al-Nusra Front? (Part 2 - What Has the Group Done?)

Continuing our discussion of the al-Nusra Front, we'll now turn from a more general discussion of the group and its mysterious leadership to its actions and its growing strength within the cadre of Syrian rebel groups fighting against the Assad regime.

What Has the al-Nusra Front Done?
Early in the year, during the first weeks/months of the al-Nusra Front's existence, it is somewhat difficult to determine precisely what attacks the group was responsible for.  Indeed, because some of the early attacks that were later claimed by, or attributed to, the al-Nusra Front - for instance, a suicide bombing of a trio of buses carrying Syrian riot police in a Damascus neighborhood in early January - occurred before the group was well known, rumors were rampant that al-Nusra was, in fact, a front created by the Syrian government to discredit the Free Syrian Army and other rebel factions.

Regardless of the truth or falsity of al-Nusra's claims on early attacks, the rest of 2012 demonstrated the group's grim expertise, its power, and it authenticity.

For a more complete list of (claimed) attacks by the al-Nusra Front than you will ever likely need, I'd recommend consulting the group's Arabic-language statements, which have been gathered on the Jihadology blog by the inimitable Aaron Zelin.  However, the following is but a brief list of al-Nusra's most significant attacks:

• May 29, 2012: al-Nusra claimed responsibility for the mass-execution of 13 people in Deir Ezzor.  (NOTE: al-Nusra was also allegedly responsible for further such massacres in Deir Ezzor later in the year, such as this video from early December that supposedly shows al-Nusra fighters executing bound captives).
• October 3, 2012: al-Nusra claimed responsibility for a triple suicide car-bombing in Aleppo's Sa'adallah al-Jabiri Square.  The group claimed to be targeting Syrian command centers at a nearby officer's club, two hotels, and the local municipal offices.
• Early October 2012: al-Nusra allegedly partnered with the Free Syrian Army to seize control of an airbase in al-Ta'aneh outside of Aleppo.  This joint operation supposedly allowed the group to obtain a number of anti-aircraft missiles.
• Early December 2012: al-Nusra and several associated Islamist groups seized control of the Sheik Suleiman military base outside of Aleppo.  Allegedly, this base houses a scientific research facility connected to Syria's chemical weapons program.

Additionally, here is a map depicting the locations and relative frequency of al-Nusra's attacks between January and September 2012:

Source: Elizabeth O'Bagy, "Jihad in Syria," Middle East Security Report 6, September 2012.

Finally, the al-Nusra Front's terrorist output is prolific.  The group has claimed credit for hundreds of attacks, large and small - ranging from small-arms battles and attacks on traffic checkpoints to major suicide or car/truck bombings - including, in one instance, claiming credit for forty-five (45) attacks in four separate Syrian provinces in a single day.  In total, al-Nusra is allegedly responsible for nearly 600 attacks against Syrian forces and Assad loyalists since November 2011 (Time Magazine and State Department Press Statement Designating al-Nusra as a Terrorist Organization).

And . . . I was going to make this post a bit longer and discuss the importance of the al-Nusra Front within the larger context of the Syrian conflict/civil-war, but . . . I think this is long enough for now.