Russian and Syrian warplanes bombed rebel-held northwest Syria near the border with Turkey on Thursday to push back an insurgent offensive that captured territory for the first time in years, the Syrian army and rebel sources said.
Rebels led by Islamist terror group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham on Wednesday began an incursion into a dozen towns and villages in northwest Aleppo province, which is controlled by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces.
The attack was the biggest since March 2020 when Russia, which backs Assad, and Turkey, which supports the rebels, agreed to a ceasefire that ended years of fighting that uprooted millions of Syrians opposed to Assad’s rule.
In its first statement since the surprise campaign, the Syrian army said it had inflicted heavy losses on what it described as terrorists who had attacked on a wide front.
The army said it was cooperating with Russia and unnamed “friendly forces” to regain ground and restore the situation to what it was.
Rebels advanced almost 10 km (6 miles) from the outskirts of Aleppo city and a few kilometers away from Nubl and Zahra, two Shi’ite towns where Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah has a strong militia presence, an army source said.
They attacked al-Nayrab airport east of Aleppo, where Iranian terror proxies have outposts.
Stepping up strikes?
Rebels say the campaign was in response to stepped-up strikes in recent weeks against civilians by the Russian and Syrian air forces on areas in southern Idlib and to preempt any attacks by the Syrian army, which they said was building up troops near front lines with rebels.
Meanwhile Iranian state media said that Revolutionary Guards Brigadier General Kioumars Pourhashemi, a senior Iranian military adviser in Syria, was killed in Aleppo by rebels.
Iran has sent thousands of fighters to Syria during the Syrian war. While these have included members of the Guards, officially serving as advisers, the bulk have been Shi’ite terrorists from all over the region.
Turkish security sources said on Thursday the rebels initially launched a limited operation after attacks by Syrian government forces, and expanded the operation after government forces abandoned their positions.
The Turkish sources said the rebels’ movements remained within the boundaries of a de-escalation zone in Idlib, which was agreed in 2019 by Russia, Iran and Turkey with the aim of reducing hostilities between the rebels and government forces.
A Turkish defense ministry source said Turkey was following developments in northern Syria closely, and had taken precautions to ensure the security of Turkish troops there.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, listed as a terrorist organization by the United States and Turkey, has long been targeted by Syrian government and Russian forces.
It competes with more mainstream rebel groups backed by Turkey that also control swathes of territory along the Turkish border.
The rebels say over 80 people, mostly civilians, have been killed this year in drone strikes on rebel-held villages.
Damascus says it is waging a war against al Qaeda-inspired terrorists and denies targeting civilians indiscriminately.
