The Syrian Army has reportedly mounted a counteroffensive, pushing the terrorists back in some areas
Jihadist forces in Syria claim that they have captured 56 villages in the western countryside of Aleppo province since launching a surprise offensive from the militant-controlled Idlib province on Wednesday.
The government army is reportedly mounting a counteroffensive against the militants, using its air power advantage.
The Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS) terrorist group, formerly known as Jabhat al-Nusra, and its allies are responsible for this week’s push into government-controlled parts of the country, according to Syrian media. The flare-up is the most significant in years since Russia and Türkiye helped establish a shaky truce in 2020.
The jihadists claim to have seized some 400 square kilometers of territory, reaching the outskirts of the city of Aleppo by Thursday, the Turkish news agency Anadolu reported on Friday. They also claim to have captured heavy weaponry and other military hardware from the Syrian Army.
The Syrian military has launched a counterattack, forcing the militants to retreat in some areas, the Beirut-based TV channel Al Mayadeen reported on Friday. The terrorists were pushed out of some 20 villages, while Syrian warplanes conducted airstrikes on a militant HQ in the town of Mare’ in northern Aleppo, according to the outlet’s sources.
Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency shared footage of several strikes, which it said it received from a Syrian military source.
In 2015, Russia helped Damascus beat back various jihadists groups which were threatening to overrun the government after seizing large swathes of Syrian territory. The military intervention came after the rise of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS), a then-prominent terrorist organization that staged an incursion into neighboring Iraq in 2014.
Türkiye, which borders the Idlib province, strongly objected to military action in that part of Syria, claiming it would inevitably cause a new mass exodus of refugees across the border. As a result, HTS and other jihadist groups remained influential players in the province.
Another part of Syrian territory remains outside of Damascus’ control, as US-backed Syrian militias in the north-east of the country reject the government’s authority. The US has a military base in Syria, which the country calls illegal.
