A rebel force recently carried out the biggest attack this year against the Syrian government. They have captured large parts of the country's second-largest city, Aleppo. Not only that, it is also moving towards the city of Hama in the south of the country.
According to the BBC, Russia, an ally of the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad, carried out airstrikes again after 2016 due to this sudden attack. Earlier, the Syrian army had left the city.
The rebels who took control of Aleppo are reported to be the Islamist armed group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. The armed group has a long and complicated history in the Syrian conflict.
The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham armed group was formed in 2011 as a direct affiliate of al-Qaeda under the name Jabhat al-Nusra. Not only that, the leader of the Islamic State (IS) Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi also played a role in the formation of this group.
The armed group was initially considered one of the most effective and formidable groups against Syrian President Assad. Jihadi ideology was their main driving force. As a result, the rebel alliance that started the journey against the Bashar al-Assad government under the name of 'Free Syria', had some differences with the Hayat 'Jabhat al-Nusra' group.
In 2016, Jabhat al-Nusra leader Abu Mohammad al-Jowlani severed ties with al-Qaeda and established a new organization. This organization later became known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
According to the BBC report, the war in Syria has been virtually at a standstill for the past four years. President Bashar al-Assad was able to re-establish control over the country's major cities. But some parts of the country are still out of his control.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham's stronghold is in the northwestern province of Idlib. From there, these rebels suddenly attacked the city of Aleppo.
Although Syria has calmed down after the bloody civil war, mainly in Idlib province, clashes between Assad's forces and rebel groups have continued to some extent. However, a ceasefire agreement brokered by Russia and Turkey came into force in 2020 to stop the conflict.
Currently, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group has established a stronghold in Idlib. How they rekindle the Syrian conflict and challenge the Assad regime with a surprise attack on Aleppo remains to be seen.
