The Syrian army has announced a temporary withdrawal from the northwestern city of Aleppo. Because a major offensive led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rebels killed dozens of their soldiers. Russia's Defense Ministry said on Saturday (November 30) that its air force had launched strikes against rebels in support of the Syrian army. British news agency Reuters reported this news.
Rebels have entered the city of Aleppo, posing the biggest challenge of the year to President Bashar al-Assad. However, Russian news agencies reported that Russia, a close ally of Assad, carried out airstrikes targeting the rebels in support of government forces. Basically since 2020 both warring sides in Syria have been calm.
However, the Syrian army recently acknowledged the progress of the rebels and said that the rebels have entered many parts of Aleppo. They have taken control of the Aleppo airport. In addition, two security sources claimed that they captured the town of Marat al-Numan in Idlib province.
Images from Saturday show people posing next to an overturned statue of President Bashar al-Assad's late brother, Basil al-Assad. The rebels were moving around the city in trucks. Opposition flags were also seen standing near Aleppo's historic citadel.
The pro-government newspaper Al-Watan reported that the Russian forces carried out airstrikes targeting rebel gatherings and fleets.
The fighting has reignited Syria's long-running conflict, at a time when wars are raging in Gaza and Lebanon.
The White House's National Security Council in Washington said it was monitoring the situation closely. National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said Syria's refusal to participate in the UN political process and its reliance on Russia and Iran created the conditions that led to the collapse of Assad's forces in northwestern Syria.
Hundreds of thousands of people have lost their lives in the Syrian civil war that began in 2011. Many are displaced. But large-scale fighting in northwestern Syria stopped several years ago after a de-escalation agreement between Russia and Turkey.
