Max Abrahms, professor of political science at Northeastern University and a member at the Council on Foreign Relations, says that the video is an attempt to prise other rebel groups away from the lure of Isis and to join the Army of Islam’s similarly-brutal ranks.

“The video tried to portray Isis as being in cahoots with the Assad regime, but this is really a political ploy in order for the Army of Islam to gain support from other rebel groups,” he says. “Saying that Isis are in cahoots with Assad is one way to alienate that group.”

“The rebel alternative is not a very good one. The rebels are extremists,” he adds. “Although the US has been searching desperately to find rebels, to vet and train and be a viable alternative to Islamic State, the reality is that only a tiny percentage of rebels are being sufficiently moderate for the US to invest in.”