Syria launches counter-attacks in an attempt to halt insurgency
Shock rebel offensive saw government forces lose control of Aleppo for the first time since the start of the country’s civil war
The Syrian military rushed reinforcements to the northwest and launched air strikes Sunday in an attempt to push back insurgents who seized the country’s largest city of Aleppo, as Iran pledged to help the government counter the surprise offensive.
Iran has been a key political and military ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his country’s civil war, but it was unclear how Tehran would support Damascus in the latest flare-up.
Insurgents led by jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham launched a two-pronged attack on Aleppo and the countryside around Idlib on Wednesday, before moving toward neighbouring Hama province.
On Sunday, government troops created a “strong defensive line” in northern Hama, as they attempted to stall the insurgents’ momentum, according to Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Meanwhile, jets pounded the cities of Idlib and Aleppo, killing at least 25 people, according to the Syrian civil defence group that operates in opposition-held areas.
The surge in fighting has raised the prospect of another violent, destabilising front reopening in the Middle East at a time when Israel is fighting Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, conflicts that have repeatedly threatened to ignite an even wider regional war. It also risks drawing Russia and Turkey – each with its own interests to protect in Syria – into direct heavy fighting against each other.
