01/03/2014 10:19
Syria jihadist group Isis 'retreating after warning'
Reports from northern Syria say a rebel jihadist group has been pulling back from positions after being given an ultimatum by a rival, the BBC reported.
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) is said to have been retreating towards the city of Raqqa.
The Nusra Front has given Isis until Saturday to accept mediation or face being expelled from Syria.
Infighting between rival rebel groups has seen more than 3,000 people killed in the past two months.
The main confrontation is between Isis and other Islamist militant groups.
Abu Mohammed al-Julani of the Nusra Front, which is affiliated with al-Qaeda, warned Isis on Tuesday that it would be driven from Syria and "even from Iraq" if it did not accept arbitration within five days.
He demanded that Isis halt all military operations against other rebels, and allow an Islamic court to rule on its actions.
The threat came after the killing of an al-Qaeda emissary, Abu Khaled al-Suri, in a suicide attack on in the northern city of Aleppo on Sunday. Rebel groups blamed ISIS for the bombing.
The latest reports suggest ISIS is taking the threat from the Nusra Front seriously, the BBC's Arab affairs editor Sebastian Usher says.
Isis appears to have pulled fighters out of positions in Aleppo province, where it may fear it is not strong enough to withstand attack.
Videos posted online appear to show residents celebrating in a town that ISIS fighters have left.
The group seems most concerned with protecting the area around its key stronghold, Raqqa. It has imposed its severe interpretation of Islamic law, including a tax on Christians, in the city.