Inside Syria - 'Terrorists' by association

The situation has been messy from the start, but now the battle for Syria has been further complicated by the official involvement of al-Qaeda. On Wednesday, the head of al-Nusra Front in Syria formally pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda leader, Ayman Al Zawahiri. The establishment of al-Nusra was announced in January 2012. Like al-Qaeda, it has used car bombs and suicide attacks in its efforts to bring down the al-Assad government. The group is estimis estimated to have around 5,000 members, believed to be largely funded and trained by al-Qaeda in Iraq. In December, the US State Department put al-Nusra on its list of terrorist organisations. It said the group was responsible for hundreds of attacks, and the deaths of countless civilians. To discuss the latest developments, Inside syria with presenter Ghida Fakhry is joined by guests: Shiraz Maher from King's College International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation; retired General Jack Keane, a former four-star general and US Army Vice Chief of Staff; and Louay Safi, a member of the opposition Syrian National Coalition.