Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri called for an end to clashes between terrorist militants fighting the Syrian government.

Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri called for an end to clashes between terrorist militants fighting the Syrian government.

In a recording uploaded on YouTube late on Wednesday, Zawahiri urged all jihadist groups and "every free person in Syria seeking to overthrow (President Bashar) al-Assad... to seek an end to fighting between brothers in jihad and Islam immediately."

A new front in Syria's nearly three-year-old conflict opened in early January when powerful terrorists have been engaged in deadly clashes between themselves.

The extremists were initially welcomed by other armed opposition militants, but allegations of brutal abuses against civilians as well as rival opposition fighters sparked a backlash and deadly infighting.

In some cases, Al-Nusra Front, the officially recognized Al-Qaeda franchise in Syria, participated in fighting against the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL).

In Wednesday's audio message, Zawahiri said that "these organizational ties can be sacrificed without second thought if they conflicted with your unity... against your enemy."

"Jihadist groups are our brothers whom we refuse to accuse of apostasy," added the Al-Qaeda chief.