Russian-backed Syrian government forces will be able to advance all the way to t...
IDLIB CITY, Syria - Russian-backed Syrian government forces will be able to advance all the way to the Turkish border if they pierce rebel defenses in the northwest, a top opposition official said, urging Turkey to do more to shield the area from a major attack.
Fawaz Hilal, head of the “Salvation Government” that runs Idlib province, expressed confidence that opposition fighters gathered in the Idlib region from all over Syria would be able resist the onslaught. Hilal spoke at his office in Idlib city, the provincial capital where life has continued as normal as the offensive has mostly targeted front-line areas to the south.
Hilal noted Idlib’s defenses had been boosted by rebels forced from other parts of Syria such as Ghouta, Homs and Deraa when Assad took their towns and villages.Tahrir al-Sham is the most powerful insurgent group in the region. It was formerly known as the Nusra Front, al Qaeda’s Syrian wing, until it broke away and renamed itself in 2016. The United Nations designates it a terrorist group.
Much of the recent shelling has hit an area that was declared a demilitarized “buffer zone” last year by Russia and Turkey. Under the agreement, heavy weapons and jihadists were supposed to leave the zone.
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