Map of Aleppo and the surrounding region, showing the Syrian government forces' progress in their bid to lift the siege of two Shiite villages. (AFP Photo/Jonathan JACOBSEN, Omar KAMAL)
Reuters: Syrian army and allies breaks rebel siege of Shi'ite towns: army
The Syrian army and its allies have broken a three-year rebel siege of two Shi’ite towns in northwest Syria, government and rebel groups said on Wednesday, cutting off a main insurgent route to nearby Turkey.
The two towns of Nubul and Zahraa, with an estimated 60,000 population, are connected to the border by areas under the control of Kurdish militias that provided them some access.
Al Manar, television channel of Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group, joined Syria's army and state media in reporting the breakthrough, which it said came after the army moved in from towns secured in a recent offensive in northern Aleppo province.
Read more ....
WNU Editor: This is a huge victory for the Syrian army. It also now means that the rebel portions of the city of Aleppo are now under siege .... Syria civil war: Assad’s forces cut off last rebel supply line to Aleppo raising fears of huge humanitarian crisis (Independent).
More News On The Syrian Army Cutting Off The Rebel Supply Route To The City Of Aleppo.
Syria conflict: Government 'cuts Aleppo rebel supply route' -- BBC
Syria army cuts rebel supply route in Aleppo -- AFP
Syrian Army ends 3-year siege of 2 Shiite towns in Aleppo – reports -- RT
Syrian Army Breaks Siege of Two Towns in Northern Aleppo -- Sputnik
Syrian regime forces cut Aleppo’s main supply route to Turkey -- Daily Sabah
Assad cuts last supply route to Aleppo -- The Times
Syria regime forces cut rebel supply route in Aleppo -- Zee news
Syrian regime encircles Aleppo under Russian air power -- The Telegraph
Syrian government forces backed by Russian air power advance on Aleppo -- Euronews
Aleppo offensive uproots hundreds, kills aid workers: U.N. -- Reuters
7 comments:
WNU Editor,
It's funny, no mention ever of a "humanitarian" crisis when Al Nusra and ISIS were besieging the Shia/Christian towns of Nubul and Zahraa,
but now that al Nusra is trapped in Alleppo, we are supposed to be worried that the jihadi head choppers might run out of bullets and car bombs.
Jay. Russian close air support is making a difference. But as for the siege of Aleppo .... if I was in that city I would be looking for a way out RIGHT NOW!
Considering it's the UN under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs making the "humanitarian" crisis claim, I'd be looking at who put on the pressure.
""humanitarian" crisis when Al Nusra and ISIS were besieging the Shia/Christian towns of Nubul and Zahraa," - Jay
That is our Christian hating MSM media.
It's more that the US MSM would have to stake out a position different from that of the Borg and admit that Assad is not the New Hitler, and that the actions of even the so called FSA rainbow unicorn jihadi head choppers make the most extreme things the Syrian Government has done to try to keep order, look mild and moderate.
They gave barrels of ink, more barrels of ink than the SPAF has dropped barrel bombs, to the Christians in Iraq, or when ISIS took FSA bald areas and got blamed for ethnically cleansing the Christian population and defacing the Church's that the FSA had already driven away and desecrated.
Just look at all the contortions they are going through right now, trying to explain that an R+6 victory, isn't really a victory, that it harm's the "non-existent" Peace Process, that it will lead to a "humanitarian catastrophe ", and will end in a Russian Quagmire.
The Voices of Empire, never contradict the Empire.
"His Master's Voice", so to say.
WNU Editor,
Roughly half of Aleppo has remained in Syrian Government hands since the start of the war.
Jihadi rule, infighting and looting, along with the SAA attempts to retake the city and attack the jihadist's has almost completely destroyed the rebel enclaves.
Of the 2 million civillians in Aleppo, 1 million wound up on the Government's side, and by 2013, another 500,000 had managed to flee to Government held area's, some 450,000 fled to Turkey, and only some 50,000 remain in Jihadi held areas.
Those that were willing to get out, did.
I don't give much of a value to this "cut-off" and "breaking the siege" operation. This was just used for political goals, timed to the peace talks, and do not show SAA or rebel capabilities. First see the siege of the two town, Nubl and Zara. These towns were under siege from around North-East-South side, by rebels who are sure islamist, but not the worst type, nor the best trained ones. Their fighting capabilities were limited, and even if they tried to capture these towns, they never achived anything in their offensives. The siege of the towns were true, but the Western part of the towns were bordered with Kurdish areas, which I'm sure they not fought against there, and did not blocked the towns from different resources. The last major supply that those tows got was in early 2014 when the Homs siege ended, and as an agreement of some rebel units could leave Homs alive, while SAA was allowed to bring resources into Zara and Nubl. At all the siege of these towns and the preasure that they got was minimal, compared to what the Aleppo Centra Prison's siege was (I still see it as the most difficult sieges of all in Syria), or Kafraya currently in Idlib, or Der-er-Zor.
Other than that after the recapture of Birgad Base 80, the Operation Rainbow achived to capture Aleppo's industrial park in the NE, and areas in the North, and with a short break SAA launched an attack toward W and NW, but in 2014 they met heavier resistance. At a result around the end of 2014 the frontline just got to a position, that if the situation require SAA could launch an attack to breake the siege of Zara and Nubl, however since then SAA not really pushed this operation, but they always had the posibility to success this limited and faerl easy military operation. And the reason I see for the late cutoff is IS. SAA know that IS fighting rebels north from Aleppo (Azaz and Mareh areas), and with a cutoff they may would force rebels to break out toward the south and by this IS would come into the vacum they create on the North, and this not really would have come handy to the situation. Rebels holding IS well on the North, with the current cutoff they still can hold their pocket without any difficulties, and there are no goal to SAA to fight rebels in this area.
I think the Azaz supply route is not as important as news says. There are still huge border areas with Turkey, which are controleld by the rebels, so they still can get any supply which they want. About the siege of Aleppo, the siege was there since 2014, when SAA advanced into Layamoor area of Aleppo (Western end of the city), and made the area north from that under their limited fire control (both from S and N side). Sure supplies could still get in and our to the city, but on a limited way. Aleppo is an important moral target for SAA, and the capture of it would meant basically the end of the war, but the cost is still too high, and even with huge SAA forces present in the area, it's unlikely they would frontally go against the city, but some minor advance to fully close the remained supply lines and advance south from Nubl and Zara are expected. SAA's main focus now is on the next phase of the SE offensive, which direction is seems like to be Kafraya (but the agreement at Zabadani gave some more time to SAA) or to link it with Nubl/Zara, and the fight against IS to close their supply line to Turkey.
Post a Comment