In Syria, pro-Turkish forces captured a strategic Kurd-held town, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

The assault comes as a coalition of rebels led by Islamists took control of Aleppo, the country's second city.

In a Syria that has been fragmented since the 2011 war, pro-Turkish rebel groups took the strategic town of Tal Rifaat in the north of the country on Sunday, December 1, announced the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH). Tal Rifaat is located in an enclave controlled by Kurdish forces, surrounded by regions held by pro-Turkish groups and the Syrian army. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had repeatedly threatened an offensive against this enclave.

The assault comes as a coalition of Islamist-led rebels inflicted a major blow on Bashar al-Assad's regime, which on Sunday lost control of Aleppo, the country's second city, for the first time since the start. of the war.

Pro-Turkish forces also launched an offensive on Saturday against government forces and Kurdish forces in the province of Aleppo, according to the OSDH. These forces were able to take control of two localities, Safireh and Khanasser, southeast of Aleppo, and the Kweires military airport on Sunday, added the NGO, which warned that around 200,000 Syrian Kurds in northern Aleppo province were “besieged by pro-Turkish factions”.

Kurdish forces make up the main component of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which control large swaths of northeastern Syria and are supported by the United States. In a statement, the SDF accused Turkey of being behind the offensive, saying it was seeking to “divide Syria”.