Expert speaks of "collapse" Syrian rebels continue to advance - Assad in trouble

Syrian rebels are apparently continuing to advance and are putting the ruler Bashar al-Assad under pressure. He is responding with counter-attacks.

Keystone-SDA

01.12.2024, 09:44

SDA

The situation in Syria is coming to a head. Activists report that opposition forces have now taken control of at least eleven towns in the western province of Hama. According to Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights based in the UK, Syrian government soldiers have been spotted retreating from the region.

However, the Ministry of Defense in Damascus firmly rejected all reports that the troops were retreating. The province of Hama, formerly a center of resistance, was last completely under the control of President Bashar al-Assad.

Charles Lister, an expert on Syria, explained on Platform X that the rebels could possibly take large parts of Hama and Aleppo within the next 24 hours. He described the events as one of the most significant turning points in the 14 years of the Syrian civil war. Assad's position appears more fragile than ever before, wrote Lister, speaking of a "complete collapse".

Russia helps out

Meanwhile, Russia is flying its first airstrikes on rebel positions. At least one civilian is said to have been killed and several others injured. The UK-based monitoring center obtains its information from a network of informants on the ground in Syria.

Since the middle of the week, rebels led by the Islamist group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) have been able to recapture large areas in north-western Syria. On Saturday, rebels advanced far into the megacity of Aleppo. Syria's ruler Bashar al-Assad announced a counter-offensive.

The fighting in the north-west represents a new escalation in the civil war after years of stalemate. A devastating war has been raging in Syria since 2011. The Syrian government most recently controlled around two thirds of the country with the help of its allies Russia and Iran.