Al Qaeda has squabbled about its leadership, debated its flag and even reprimanded members over tardy expense forms.

But on Monday, the terrorist group took the rare step of disassociating itself from one of the most powerful and ruthless rebel groups fighting in Syria.

In a statement posted on jihadi sites, Al Qaeda’s leadership said they had no connection with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which is one of many rebel groups battling the regime of President Bashar al Assad.

ISIS, led by Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, is comprised of experienced fighters from Iraq and has managed to attract foreign jihadist from around the world, including Canada. They have come a long way from engaging on what some analysts dubbed a “charm offensive” last year when they provided military backing, humanitarian support and even street festivals with tug-a-war competitions, for Syria’s despondent populace.

But infighting between Syria’s rebel groups began when the ISIS (also known as the Islamic State of Iraq al-Sham or the Levant) turned to mass killings and the kidnapping of other jihadists.

Although the authenticity of Monday’s statement, which was summarized by the Washington-based SITE Intelligence group, could not be verified, the split follows previous reprimands to ISIS by Al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri.

“Essentially ISIS has been in defiance with Al Qaeda’s commands for awhile. It will have very little immediate on the ground impact (in Syria). It’s possible it will have impact over time,” said Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow at the U.S. Foundation for Defense of Democracies, in an interview Monday.

Gartenstein-Ross notes that Al Qaeda still has influence in Syria with ties to other groups, including Jabhat al Nusra, which has been designated a terrorist group by the U.S. and Canada.

But if ISIS remains a powerful force, that could impact Al Qaeda both in terms of funding and weakening its reach. “You can already see a dynamic on jihadists forum where some members are siding with ISIS and against recognized Al Qaeda affiliates like Jabhat al Nusra… This has the potential to create a competing source of power and thus threaten Al Qaeda’s dominance through the jihadist movement.”

There has been tension in the past between Al Qaeda and its so-called franchises, most notably the Somalia-based Al Shabab. Al Qaeda resisted a formal merger between the groups until 2012, following the killings of Osama bin Laden and Al Qeada’s top leader in East Africa.

Under Zawahiri, however, it appears Al Qaeda has tried to expand its reach.

“This reverses Al Qaeda’s years-long effort to develop a bigger tent, to allow affiliates to come in the door,” said Brian Fishman, a counterterrorism research fellow at the New American Foundation. “The repudiation of ISIS by Al Qaeda Central in general, and Zawahiri in particular, shows that they recognize the downsides of that. Any many franchise brand manager will tell you that you have to have consistency across the brand.”

The dispute between Al Qaeda and its self-declared leaders in Iraq and Syria has been going on for months. Zawahiri admonished al-Baghdadi in May according to a letter obtained by Al Jazeera, telling him to return to Iraq and leave Syria’s fight to Jabhat al Nusra.

Al-Baghdadi refused. Although there has not been an official response yet regarding Monday’s statement, Fishman says he expects ISIS may respond with a shrug since Al-Baghdadi has long held ambitions of independently ruling one state under strict Sharia Law from Baghdad to Damascus.

“What I anticipate we will see out of ISIS is a retort basically saying, ‘When we created an Islamic state (in Iraq) we were no longer accountable to Al Qaeda.’ ”

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Which begs the question, could the split be as simple as a pre-emptive breakup by Zawahiri for a relationship which long ago turned sour?

Fishman laughs, but agrees it is a possibility. “As external observers we often focus on the strategic significances and strategic differences reflected in these kind of decisions and overlook the interpersonal ones,” he said. “Ego and personality clashes have dramatically driven the splits in the jihadi movements over the years.”

Read more about: