The Syrian regime lost complete control of Aleppothe country’s second city, for the first time since the start of the civil war in 2011, after a lightning offensive by rebel groups that dealt a hard blow to President Bashar al Assadan NGO reported on Sunday.
The alliance of rebel militias dominated by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS) began a lightning assault on Wednesday to take Aleppo, which left 412 deadmostly combatants from both sides, but also at least 61 civilians, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH) reported.
The HTS and other allied factions “control Aleppo, except for the neighborhoods under the control of the Kurdish forces,” Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the OSDH, a UK-based NGO that has a wide network of informants in the area, told AFP. land.
The United States and its allies France, Germany and the United Kingdom called this Sunday in a joint statement for a “de-escalation” in Syria and urged “a political solution to the conflict».
In the complex kaleidoscope of the Syrian civil war, with a strong presence of foreign forces, another front intensified on Sunday 40 km north of Aleppo, where pro-Turkish fighters captured the city of Tal Rifat and several surrounding towns from Kurdish forces, said the OSDH.
The report indicates that communications are cut off with the majority Kurdish areas, which raises fears that “massacres” will be perpetrated against that population.
Tal Rifat is located about 20 km south of the border with Türkiye and is surrounded by regions held by pro-Turkish forces or the Syrian army.
President Assad stressed “the importance of the support of allies and friends to confront the attacks foreign-backed terrorists» in the Aleppo offensive, after meeting in Damascus with the Iranian Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi.
Russian support for the Syrian army
Russia indicated for its part that its aviation was helping the Syrian army to “push back” the rebels in the provinces of Idlib (northwest), Hama (center) and Aleppo (north).
These are the largest clashes in several years in Syria, the scene of a civil war that broke out after the violent repression of peaceful protests in 2011.
The conflict, which involved regional and world powers and jihadist groups, has left half a million dead, millions displaced and a country fragmented.
The insurgents led by the HTS control large swaths of territory in the province of Idlib and some areas in Aleppo, Hama, in the central area, and Latakia, with access to the Mediterranean.
The Syrian Kurds, for their part, established an autonomous authority supported by a military force in swaths of the northwest.
The Syrian regime, with the support of Russia and Iran, began a counteroffensive in 2015 that allowed it to progressively regain control of much of the country.
The insurgents began their offensive on the same day that a fragile ceasefire came into force in neighboring Lebanon between Israel and the Islamist movement Hezbollah, backed by Iran, after two months of all-out war.
The rebels took dozens of towns on their march towards Aleppo, whose rich history is captured in its imposing citadel located in its old town, inscribed by UNESCO on the list of world heritage in danger.
“We are entrenched at home”
In Aleppo, an AFP photographer saw charred vehicles. Inside one of the cars, the body of a woman lay in the back seat. “We are barricaded at home,” said a resident who asked not to be identified for security reasons.
The rebels “are trying to put on a friendly face and reassure the population,” who forced the bakeries to work all night and today distributed free bread,” he added.
Aaron Stein, president of the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), based in Washington, considered that “Russia’s presence has been considerably reduced” in recent years that “rapid aerial bombardments in response are of limited usefulness.” The expert described this rebel offensive as a “reminder of the regime’s weakness.”
In Idlib, there are bodies in a hospital and burning cars in the streets, according to AFP images, after the OSDH reported that a Russian bombing killed at least eight civilians this Sunday, including two children.
The situation in the Middle East
The Middle East has been shaken since October 2023 by the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement in Gaza and is now in suspense due to the fragile ceasefire between the Hebrew State and Hezbollah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared this Sunday that he is “constantly following developments in Syria.”
Northwestern Syria has remained in a precarious calm in recent years, made possible by a ceasefire established after a regime offensive in March 2020, mediated by Russia and Turkey.
#Bashar #Assads #regime #loses #complete #control #Aleppo #Syrias #city
