Spearheading jihadist rebels, who have launched a wide-scale offensive in northern Syria since last Wednesday, are now "at the gates" of Hamas, the country's fourth-largest urban center, many of whose residents have fled, a non-governmental organization said yesterday. government organization, while the Syrian army announced that it had sent reinforcements.
An alliance of jihadists and rebels led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), al-Qaida's former Syrian arm, has been waging a lightning offensive in northwestern Syria since Nov. 27, capturing dozens of communities and most of Aleppo — its second-largest urban center. country— and continues its southward advance.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported last night that the rebels are now "at the gates" of the city of Hama and that they have bombed some districts.
The Britain-based non-governmental organization, which relies on a wide network of sources in Syria, added that some of the city's population had fled, that there was a "large wave of displacement due to" the hostilities, with some families moving to the southern part of the province of the same name. and others even further away, in the neighboring province of Homs.
A Syrian military source told the official SANA news agency that "large military reinforcements have arrived in the city of Hama to support the forces on the front lines and counter any attempted attack."
Also citing the army, the Syrian news agency said "our forces are in the outskirts of the city", adding that "operations are underway to recapture positions and cities where armed terrorist organizations have entered".
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the fighting also forced "dozens of families" from their homes in western and northern sectors of Hama province.
The jihadists and rebels allied with them overran towns and villages in the northern part of the province "after fierce hostilities with regime forces," the NGO added.
Pentagon: US destroyed weapons systems in eastern Syria
US forces destroyed truck-mounted rocket launchers, tanks and mortars that posed a "clear and immediate threat" in eastern Syria on Tuesday, the Pentagon said.
The weapons systems posed a "clear and immediate threat to US and coalition forces," US Defense Department spokesman Lt. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters, referring to the international coalition formed to counter the Islamic State (IS) in region.
"We are still in the process of assessing who used these weapons, but be aware that in the region there are organizations close to Iran that have attacked" US military personnel in the past, Mr. Ryder, speaking of blows in "legitimate defense."
The US has deployed about 2.500 troops to Iraq and another 900 to Syria as part of an international coalition formed in 2014 to counter IS, which had seized vast swaths of Syrian and Iraqi territory before being defeated in 2019.
However, jihadist cores remain active, especially in remote and rural areas, outside of major urban centers.
Moreover, since the outbreak of the war in the Gaza Strip, paramilitary groups close to Iran have resumed their attacks against US forces or interests in Iraq and Syria, which Washington, Israel's main international ally, has retaliated with many cases.
On November 27, an alliance of jihadists and rebels dominated by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), al-Qaida's former Syrian arm, launched a lightning offensive in northwestern Syria and seized dozens of communities, including most of Aleppo, the second-largest Syrian urban center, before continuing to advance towards south.
Lt Gen Ryder assured yesterday that the US airstrike had "nothing to do with the wider operations" of other military forces or armed organizations "in north-west Syria".
