File image.
Turkish-backed militants from the so-called Syrian National Army (SNA), which is supporting al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in its ongoing large-scale offensive in northern Syria, made serious gains in the northern Aleppo countryside on December 1.
The SNA launched its own operation in Aleppo, codenamed Dawn of Freedom, on November 30, just three days after HTS and its allies launched their offensive, codenamed Operation Deterrence of Aggression.
Within 24 hours of launching the offensive, SNA militants managed to capture dozens of towns in the northern and eastern Aleppo countryside from the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and Kurdish forces, mainly the People’s Protection Units (YPG).
One of the towns that fell into the hands of the militants was Tell Rifaat, one of the largest urban centers in the northern Aleppo countryside.
It is worth noting that the SAA has retreated from most of Aleppo city. Some Syrian troops remain in isolated pockets. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is led by the YPG, dispatched thousands of fighters in the hopes of saving the city and to help evacuate people. However, their forces are now present only in the district of Sheikh Maqsoud and a few nearby areas.
Responding to the HTS-led offensive and the operation launched by the SNA, the SDF, which is backed by the U.S., declared a “general mobilization” on December 1.
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, the political body of the SDF, characterizes the ongoing offensive as “a new form of ISIS terrorism” and part of a plot by Turkey to seize more Syrian territory. It also called on the international community to halt it.
The SDF may be preparing to launch a counter-attack in Aleppo. It is unclear if the SAA would be able to aid such efforts. However, the Syrian Arab Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Forces could provide close air support for the Kurdish forces.
Meanwhile, the U.S., which considers HTS a terrorist group, does not seem to be bothered by the offensive and is unlikely to provide any aid.
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