Syrian rebels reportedly seize Aleppo | Syria: the spiral of war

Several factions of Syrian rebels, including jihadists, occupy several neighborhoods of Aleppo and the surrounding area of ​​Idlib, in north-west Syria.

Syrian authorities closed Aleppo airport and canceled all flights.

The rebels claim to have taken possession of the Aleppo citadel and the Umayyad mosque, which was heavily damaged during clashes between the rebels and the Syrian army at the start of the conflict between 2012 and 2013.

The rebels and their jihadist allies also imposed a curfew in the city until Saturday morning.

Sources say the Syrian army claimed to have closed the main road to Aleppo and carried out a tactical withdrawal neighborhoods taken over by rebels. The army reportedly closed the city’s exits and set up checkpoints.

Previously, the Syrian Defense Ministry said it had recaptured some neighborhoods and inflicted heavy losses on the terrorist groups.

Russian forces said they killed 200 rebels in a single day in Idlib and Aleppo, adding that Russian forces are supporting the Syrian army in confronting these organizations.

For its part, the Turkish Foreign Ministry indicated that the latest attacks by the Syrian army against the rebels in Idlib have damaged the Astana agreements.

International implications

These agreements signed in 2017 by Turkey, Russia and Iran established four ceasefire zones. However, neither the Syrian government nor the Syrian opposition abroad signed them.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Friday that the surprise offensive by Syrian rebels was taking part of an American-Zionist plan following the defeat of the Zionist regime (Israel) in Lebanon and Palestine.

During a telephone exchange with his Syrian counterpart, Abbas Araqchi reiterated his support for the government in Damascus, Iranian official media reported.

The Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, declared for his part that Russia, Iran and the “Axis of Resistance” will not allow a repeat of the events of past years in Syria .

Furthermore, Russia on Friday urged the Syrian government to restore constitutional order in the province of Aleppo.

Regarding the situation around Aleppo, this is an attack on Syrian sovereignty and we are in favor of the Syrian authorities restoring order to the region and restoring constitutional order as soon as possibledeclared Friday Dmitri Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, during a press briefing.

Asked about unconfirmed reports circulating on Telegram that Bashar Al-Assad had traveled to Moscow to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Peskov said he had no nothing to say about this.

A long conflict

Russia intervened militarily in Syria in 2015 alongside regular armed forces.

It maintains an air base and naval infrastructure in Syria.

Syrian rebel factions launched an armed operation on Wednesday unprecedented since March 2020.

Rebels made territorial gains after an incursion into a dozen towns and villages in Aleppo province, controlled by Syrian armed forces.

During the civil war that broke out in 2011 and left more than half a million dead and displaced millions, Hayat Tahrir Sham, dominated by the former Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, took the lead. control of entire parts of Idlib province and neighboring territories in the regions of Aleppo, Hama and Latakia.

The Syrian regime regained control of a large part of the country in 2015 with the support of its Russian and Iranian allies. Its forces, supported by the Russian air force, recaptured the eastern part of Aleppo from the insurgents in 2016, after devastating bombings.

Northern Syria has benefited in recent years from a precarious calm made possible by a ceasefire established after a regime offensive in March 2020.

With information from Al Jazeera, Reuters and Agence France-Presse