Aleppo, the second-largest city in Syria, is no longer under the ruthless control of dictator Bashar al-Assad, marking a significant development since the start of the civil war.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an alliance of rebel groups has taken over Aleppo city, with the exception of areas held by Kurdish forces.
Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the UK-based NGO, stated that Aleppo city is now free from the grip of Syrian regime forces for the first time since the conflict erupted in 2012.
Assad’s whereabouts were unknown as of Saturday night, ahead of a scheduled visit from Iran’s foreign minister today.Â
He said in his first comments since the start of the surprise offensive that his regime would defeat the ‘terrorists and their supporters’, adding that the Syrian army was strong enough to beat them no matter the intensity of their attacks.Â
He is also reported to have spoken to Iraq’s prime minister Mohammed al-Sudani, who gave him reassurances abut Iraq’s readiness to support Syria in combating the rebels.Â
Sudani reportedly stressed his country’s willingness to assist in its fight against the rebellion, amid fears that a coup will take place in the coming days.Â
Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, today said that his country will ‘firmly support the Syrian government and army.’
Anti-government fighters pose for a picture on a tank on the road leading to Maaret al-Numan in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province on November 30, 2024
Smoke billows in the distance as damaged cars are seen at the site of Syrian regime airstrikes targeting anti-regime fighters in Aleppo, in northern Syria on November 30, 2024
Thousands of Syrian insurgents fanned out inside Aleppo in vehicles with improvised armour and pickups, deploying to landmarks such as the old citadel on Saturday, a day after they entered Syria’s largest city facing little resistance from government troops.
Syria’s armed forces said in a statement Saturday that to absorb the large attack on Aleppo and save lives, it has redeployed and is preparing for a counterattack.Â
They were supported by Damascus-ally Moscow, which responded with its first air strikes on Aleppo since 2016 as the jihadists and their Turkish-backed allies pressed a lightning offensive they launched on Wednesday.Â
The jihadist-led rebels seized Aleppo airport and dozens of nearby towns on Saturday after overrunning most of Aleppo, a war monitor said.
Rebels are currently marching on Damascus, Syria’s capital city, where small skirmishes have been reported.Â
The US said last night that Assad’s loss of control over much of his nation is because of his reliance on Russia and Iran. Â
Syria’s ‘reliance on Russia and Iran,’ along with its refusal to move forward with a 2015 peace process outlined by the UN Security Council, ‘created the conditions now unfolding,’ National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said in a statement.
He added: ‘At the same time, the United States has nothing to do with this offensive, which is led by Hay’at Tahir al-Sham (HTS), a designated terrorist organization.’
The surprise takeover is a huge embarrassment for al-Assad, who managed to regain total control of the city in 2016, after expelling rebels and thousands of civilians from its eastern neighborhoods following a grueling military campaign in which his forces were backed by Russia, Iran and its allied groups.
Aleppo has not been attacked by opposition forces since then.Â
The 2016 battle for Aleppo was a turning point in the war between Syrian government forces and rebel fighters after 2011 protests against al-Assad’s rule turned into an all-out war.
More to follow. Â
