Syrian insurgents enter Aleppo for first time in years after surprise offensive

Insurgents fighting the regime of Bashar al-Assad have entered Syria’s second city of Aleppo in a shock assault – their largest advance in years.

Commanders with the jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which is leading the push, said they intended to force the president’s army out of the city.

It is the first time the city has been attacked by opposition forces since 2016, when Syrian government forces were ousted from Aleppo’s eastern neighbourhoods following a gruelling military campaign in which they were backed by Russia, Iran, and allied groups.

Witnesses in Aleppo said residents had been fleeing neighbourhoods on the western edge of the city because of missiles and exchanges of fire.

Syria’s armed forces said in a statement on Friday that they had clashed with insurgents in the countryside around Aleppo and Idlib, and that a number of their drones and heavy weapons had been destroyed. They vowed to repel the attack and accused the insurgents of spreading false information about their advances.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an organisation that monitors the conflict, said the insurgents blew up two car bombs at the city’s western edge on Friday.

An insurgent commander posted a recorded message on social media calling on the city’s residents to cooperate with the advancing forces.

Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported that the opposition insurgents had entered Aleppo’s city centre on Friday. It added that the insurgents now control approximately 70 locations in the provinces of Aleppo and Idlib.

Fighters also advanced on the town of Saraqab in the northwestern Idlib province, a strategic area that would secure supply lines to Aleppo.

This week’s advances come after weeks of low-level, simmering violence. It is the most intense fighting in northwestern Syria since 2020, when government forces seized areas previously controlled by opposition fighters.

The 2016 battle for Aleppo was a turning point in the conflict between Syrian government forces and opposition forces that began when the 2011 protests against Mr Assad’s rule turned into all-out war. Russia and Iran, along with allied groups, helped Syrian government forces to reclaim control of all of Aleppo that year, after a gruelling military campaign and a siege that lasted for weeks.

Fighting over the last three days has killed at least 27 civilians, including eight children, a UN official said on Friday.

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David Carden, UN deputy regional humanitarian coordinator for the Syria crisis, said: “We’re deeply alarmed by the situation unfolding in northwest Syria.

“Relentless attacks over the past three days have claimed the lives of at least 27 civilians, including children as young as eight years old.

“Civilians and civilian infrastructure are not targets, and must be protected under international humanitarian law.”

Russian and Syrian warplanes bombed the area near the border with Turkey on Thursday to try to push back the offensive.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov said Moscow regarded the rebel attack as a violation of Syria’s sovereignty and wanted the authorities to act fast to regain control.

“As for the situation around Aleppo, it is an attack on Syrian sovereignty, and we are in favour of the Syrian authorities bringing order to the area and restoring constitutional order as soon as possible,” said Mr Peskov.

Asked about unconfirmed Russian Telegram reports that Mr Assad had flown in to Moscow for talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin, Mr Peskov said he had “nothing to say” on the matter.

Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report