War in Syria: the translocal dimension of fighter mobilization

Current research on civil war neglects the effect of translocal ties on the mobilization of fighters in armed groups (AGs). Yet the Syrian war demonstrates the necessity to pay close attention to this twofold process: Analysing YPG, Hizballah and FSA networks, we argue that AGs are more likely to persist and avoid fragmentation in the long-term if they maintain strong linkages with local communities (local anchoring) and functioning linkages across different localities. We introduce here the concept of translocality to war studies, differentiating it from transnationalism. This analytical lens enables us to focus on localities within Syria, which can influence an actor’s power position in war decisively, while also being subjected to drastic change by AGs. We conclude that translocality offers insights for the study of civil war as it enables us to grasp the embedding of armed groups – or lack thereof – in local communities; differentiating between actor groups depending on their local anchoring, and observing network dynamics between different localities.