Syrian government struggles to make gains in Idlib

Source:Yahoo News Date:16Jul2019

Turkey succesfully defended its interests in Syria by repulsing Assad’s charge in Idlib. Note that despite the arrival of S-400s, Russian-Assad air-raids didn’t cease.

Sam Heller, a Syria expert with the International Crisis Group who closely follows the situation in the rebel-controlled area, said, “Idlib’s armed opposition may not be able to win an open battle for the northwest, but they can make a Syrian military victory terribly costly, maybe intolerably so.”

Politically, Idlib reflects the tug of war among international players supporting opposing sides of Syria’s conflict. A cease-fire brokered last September by Russia, a key ally of Assad, and Turkey, which supports the rebels, collapsed on April 30 when the government began its offensive following months of violations by both sides. Turkey, which hosts 3 million Syrian refugees, fears a full-blown government offensive would cause a new wave of displaced people heading toward its border, but it has been unable — or some say, unwilling — to control the rebels in Idlib that it supports.

Al Jazeera adds:

It has been described as the Idlib offensive. But Syrian government forces leading the campaign against rebels in the northwest are now on the defensive.

More than 120 soldiers and fighters have died in heavy fighting over the last 48 hours in northern Hama Province.

And President Bashar al-Assad‘s forces are finding it hard to make substantial gains.