After a fierce battle, the rebel forces in Syria drove the government forces out of the city of Hama with the support of pro-Iran militias and Russian planes.
The army of the Bashar al-Assad regime announced a few hours ago that the rebels had been driven out of Hama. He later admitted that he had left the city “to protect the lives of civilians and prevent fighting in the city.” In turn, the rebels confirmed the capture of the northeastern districts of the city. Footage released by Reuters shows rebels entering Hama.
The rebel attack on Hama started from the city of Aleppo, 136 kilometers to the north.
Hama has remained under government control since the start of the Syrian civil war. According to the Reuters news agency, the rebel takeover “shook Damascus and its Russian and Iranian allies.”
Located in western Syria, Hama, with more than half a million inhabitants, was one of the key centers of the Islamist insurgency against government forces in the early 1970s and 1980s.
Hama is also a center from which to control two neighboring cities inhabited by religious minorities: the Christian Mahrada and As-Salamiyyah, home to the Ismaili population – an Islamic sect that emerged from the Shia in the 8th century.
Allies of the warring parties in Syria
The Sunni armed group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), formerly the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda, is behind the rebel attack. This jihadist group was formerly known as the Nusra Front and is considered a terrorist organization. by the USA, Turkey and Russia.
A rebel stands at the entrance to the city of Hama in Syria PAP/EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
Over the past decade, Russia and Iran have played a key role in the success of Bashar al-Assad's regime, which was able to regain most of the country's territory, including its main cities. Both countries remain allies. The pro-Iranian Hezbollah, which has been supporting Bashar al-Assad in Syria for years, has suffered heavy losses in the battles against Israel in Lebanon in the last two months.
However, Russian airstrikes on rebel-held areas in northern Syria have increased significantly over the past week. And armed groups supported by Iran have crossed the borders of Syria from Iraq. Turkey also said it was “cooperating and coordinating” with regional allies and that its forces were “taking steps to maintain stability in the region.”
Main photo source: PAP/EPA/MOHAMMED AL RIFAI
