Militants Launch Major Assault on Syrian Army Positions in Aleppo
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A coalition of foreign-backed militant groups, including Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), launched a significant offensive against Syrian military positions in Aleppo province on Wednesday, leading to intense clashes and substantial casualties on both sides.
According to local media reports, HTS and allied militant factions overran at least ten areas under Syrian military control west of Aleppo city and in the eastern countryside of Idlib.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based monitor, reported nearly 100 fatalities among soldiers and militants. SOHR activists noted that 44 HTS members and 16 from allied groups were killed.
Additionally, 37 Syrian forces personnel, including at least four officers, lost their lives, with five captured. The militants seized weapon depots, armored vehicles, and heavy weaponry.
The clashes also resulted in civilian casualties, including children, as Syrian army forces fired "hundreds of shells and missiles on civil and military positions," according to SOHR.
Lebanon's al-Mayadeen television network cited a Syrian source in Idlib stating that HTS directed hospitals in the city and northern countryside to halt surgeries to prioritize treating injured militants.
The source added that HTS used rocket launchers and mortars to advance toward Syrian army positions in Qabtan al-Jabal, Bala, and Sheikh Aqil in western Aleppo.
In response, the Syrian army, supported by reconnaissance aircraft and joint Syrian-Russian air forces, conducted extensive strikes around the conflict front, targeting HTS supply lines from Idlib city to the Taftanaz military airport camp east of Idlib.
Syrian forces also shelled areas near militant-held Idlib city, Ariha, Sarmada, and other locations in southern Idlib province.
Last month, joint Russian-Syrian air raids targeted HTS positions in Idlib and Latakia countrysides, focusing on training sites, warehouses, and an underground tunnel near the town of Benin in Jabal al-Zawiya. HTS, formerly known as the Nusra Front, is designated a terrorist organization by Syria, Russia, and several other countries.
Syria has been embroiled in foreign-sponsored conflict since March 2011, with Damascus accusing Western states and regional allies of supporting terrorist groups to destabilize the country. These groups aim to obstruct the Syrian government's efforts to restore security and stability, compounded by regular aggressions from Israel.
