A few months ago, in a remote town in Idlib
province, northern Syria, an unusual foreign
militant presence alarmed Syrian locals. The
fighters were reportedly of the Muslim Uighur
minority from Xinjiang province in western
China.
For a population which has grown used to the
multinational nature of the militancy, two
aspects of these new fighters struck them: their
large numbers and their ethnicity. A year ago,
they were barely hundreds of Uighur fighters,
belonging to the Al-Nusra Front-allied Turkistan
Islamic Party (TIP). Today, according to several
sources in the province, there are a few
thousand Uighur fighters, and many of them
arrived with their families after a long and
treacherous journey from China and central
Asia.
The Uighur are believed to have been seen in
large numbers in disparate regions of Idlib,
including the strategic town of Jisr Al-Shoghur,
Ariha, and the highlands of Jabal Al-Zawiya.
They have settled with their families in
deserted Alawite towns in Jisr Al-Shoghur, a
local journalist told Al Arabiya English. Videos
have emerged since last October purporting to
show them fighting in Al-Ghab plains in Hama’s
western countryside. And in Jib Al-Ahmar in
Latakia Province, the propaganda material
showcases a tank and US made anti-armor Tow
missiles.
The Uighur militants had reportedly moved
into Syria following a Chinese-backed Pakistani
campaign against their bases on the borders
with Afghanistan. The Pakistani military claimed
they had assassinated the group’s leader, Abdul
Haq, in 2010. The Pakistani defense minister
went further during a visit to China last year, to
declare the Al-Qaeda linked group members
have either been killed, or have left
Afghanistan somehow.
The Uighur’s increasing presence is believed to
be behind the string of reports about possible
Chinese intervention alongside the Russian and
Syrian regime forces.
Last December, the Chinese parliament passed
a controversial counter terrorism law, which
allows the Red Army to venture abroad. China
started building its first overseas naval base in
Djibouti, Africa, and conducted in January elite
forces trainings for “desert operations” in
“unfamiliar territory.”
“There are weapons and technical supplies,” a
Syrian regime source said, and “the Chinese
Embassy’s security delegation has been
expanded, suggesting preparations for a wider
role, and a Chinese team of experts had
arrived in Damascus’s military airport.”
The major question, the source continues, is
whether the Chinese military would play a
crucial role in the fight to regain Idlib.
However, a Chinese ground intervention
remains highly unlikely, according to Prof.
Steve Tsang, associate fellow at Chatham
House’s Associate Program. Tsang told Al
Arabiya English that he believes the Chinese
government lacks both “the military capability
and political will” to sustain such an
engagement. “The Chinese government will
support the Russians as they don’t want to see
Assad fall.”
A Syrian militant source in close contact with
Uighur fighters believes they are in Syria to
stay. The Uighur fighters speak of a treacherous
journey from their home province and the
Pakistan-Afghan borders to Syria, according to
the source, who cites conversations with the
militants. “Their journey was very costly, an
Uighur fighter told me he sold his house to
afford the trip here with his family members.
How could he think of returning?”
And unlike many other groups and foreign
fighters, “they don’t hide their faces, although
this carries a huge risk back home. They don’t
plan to return,” says the militant.
The Uighur families have allegedly settled in
abandoned towns, previously inhabited by
minorities, especially Alawites who fled in fear
of persecution, according to two journalists
from Idlib.
To help this process, the Turkistan Islamic
Party, previously known as the East Turkistan
Islamic Movement (ETIM), printed an Arabic
language magazine, Turkistan Al-Islamiya,
introducing the local population and other
militant groups to their plight under China’s
Communist rule, especially the tensions with
the Han settlers, whose immigration has been
allegedly encouraged by the government to
turn the Uighur into even more of a minority.
“We have been largely unaware of their plight,
and their magazine has helped breed some
sympathy for their cause,” the Syrian militant
said. However, he adds: “They remain largely
poor in resources, usually aiming for free rides
in transportation.” Since they are latecomers,
the Uighur fighters have missed on the great
spoils of heavy weaponry from the regime
forces.
This has reportedly left the Uighur militants
totally reliant on Nusra. In fact, their relatively
large number enforced the organization’s
previously dwindling ranks, as it had suffered in
its fight against Daesh (the so-called IS). The
Uighur have allegedly played a crucial role in
Nusra’s recent gains in the Idlib province. Their
military achievements and their abstinence
from interfering in civilian issues, such as
levying taxes or enforcing Shariah law, has
rendered them popular among the population,
according to sources in Idlib.
Their alliance with Nusra is believed to be a
continuation of long ties with Al-Qaeda, and
their allegiance to the Taliban movement.
Xinjiang borders both Afghanistan and Pakistan,
and their relationship with the Taliban
extended beyond the Afghan war in 2001 until
the summer of 2015.
The Uighur presence has wider implications on
the prospects for Syria, according to a Syrian
journalist based in Aleppo. “The regional and
international communities want this conflict
prolonged,” he says. “This conflict is no longer
about Syrians, it is the mother of many other
conflicts.” — Al Arabiya News
Nairaminted, Missy89 Appleyard vedaxcool
saudigazette.com.sa/world/mena/chinas-proxy-war-in-syria-revealing-the-uighur-fighters-role/

It has now reached a point where most of these countries don't know what they're fighting for in Syria anymore. The place has now become a war-games site where military might is tested. Ask the original Syrian Rebels what they were fighting for and they might've actually forgotten.

These are the real demons sabotaging peace in Syria.It just appears while others are seeking to level the field and reach an understanding,certain elements are interested escalating an already volatile situation.

Almighty Russia for six months now has been restore to order to Syria,all we've seen is expanse in fighting and chaos.Now China plans to enter the same dangerous waters.

At least we know who intend to use Syria as pawn in their power grabbling chess game(Russia and now China).