The surge in fighting has raised the prospect of another violent front reopening in the Middle East.
The 13-year civil war in Syria has roared back into prominence with a surprise rebel offensive on Aleppo, one of Syria’s largest cities and an ancient business hub.
In remarks published on state media, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said: “terrorists only know the language of force and it is the language we will crush them with”.The Syrian army said dozens of its soldiers had been killed in the attack on Aleppo. The US and UN have long designated the opposition force leading the attacks — Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, translated to ‘Organisation for the Liberation of the Levant’ and known by its initials HTS — as a terrorist organisation. .
Golani and HTS have sought to remake themselves in recent years, focusing on promoting civilian government in their territory as well as military action, researcher Aaron Zelin noted.His group broke ties with al-Qaeda in 2016. Golani cracked down on some extremist groups in his territory, and increasingly portrays himself as a protector of other religions. That includes last year allowing the first Christian Mass in the city of Idlib in years.
Some 6.8 million Syrians have fled the country, a refugee flow that helped change the political map in Europe by fuelling anti-immigrant far-right movements.In 2016, government forces backed by Russian airstrikes laid siege to Aleppo. Russian shells, missiles and crude barrel bombs — fuel canisters or other containers loaded with explosives and metal — methodically levelled neighbourhoods. Starving and under siege, rebels surrendered Aleppo that year.
The group leading the rebel advance is designated a terrorist organisation by the US, and Sullivan said Washington has “real concerns about the designs and objectives of that organisation”.
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