The al-Ghab offensive (July–August 2015) was an offensive launched by rebels during the
Syrian Civil War to capture areas surrounding
Jisr al-Shughur
Jisr ash-Shughūr ( ar, جِسْرُ ٱلشُّغُورِ, jisr aš-šuġūr, , also rendered as ''Jisser ash-Shughour'' and other spellings), known in antiquity as Seleucobelus ( el, Σελευκόβηλος, translit=Seleukóbēlos), is a city i ...
, and to establish a foothold in the
al-Ghab plain
The Ghab Plain ( ar, سَهْلُ ٱلْغَابِ, Sahl al-Ġāb, literally: Forest Plain) is a fertile depression lying mainly in the Al-Suqaylabiyah District in northwest Syria. The Orontes River, flowing north, enters the Plain near Muhradah, ...
, in northwestern Syria's
Idlib
ar, إدلبي, Idlibi
, coordinates =
, elevation_m = 500
, area_code = 23
, geocode = C3871
, blank_name = Climate
, blank_info ...
and
Hama
, timezone = EET
, utc_offset = +2
, timezone_DST = EEST
, utc_offset_DST = +3
, postal_code_type =
, postal_code =
, ar ...
governorates.
Background
The
2015 Northwestern Syria offensive
Fifteen or 15 may refer to:
*15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16
*one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015
Music
*Fifteen (band), a punk rock band
Albums
* ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005
* ''15'' (Ani Lorak album) ...
, dubbed by the rebels as ''Battle of Victory'',
took place in Idlib and Hama.
The campaign consisted of a three-pronged attack, with the two main assaults spearheaded by
Ahrar ash-Sham
Harakat Ahrar al-Sham al-Islamiyya ( ar-at, حركة أحرار الشام الإسلامية, Ḥarakat Aḥrāru š-Šām al-Islāmiyah, lit=Islamic Movement of the Freemen of the Levant), commonly referred to as Ahrar al-Sham, is a coalition ...
,
al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
's
al-Nusra Front
Al-Nusra Front or Jabhat al-Nusra ( ar, جبهة النصرة لأهل الشام, Jabhat an-Nuṣrah li-Ahl ish-Sham lit. ''Front of the Supporters of the People of Syria/the Levant''), known as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham ( ar, جبهة فتح ال ...
, and other
Sunni
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
Islamist factions under the banner of the
Army of Conquest
The Army of Conquest ( ar, جيش الفتح) or Jaish al-Fatah, abbreviated JaF, was a joint command center of Sunni Islamist Syrian rebel factions participating in the Syrian Civil War.
The alliance was formed in March 2015 under the supe ...
, and the remaining attack force including collaboration with
Free Syrian Army
The Free Syrian Army (FSA) ( ar, الجيش السوري الحر, al-jaysh as-Sūrī al-ḥur) is a loose faction in the Syrian Civil War founded on 29 July 2011 by officers of the Syrian Armed Forces with the goal of bringing down the governm ...
groups.
The commander of the
13th Division, affiliated with the FSA, stated that coordinating with other groups such as al-Nusra Front did not mean they were aligned with them.
Within days, the rebels captured the city of Jisr al-Shughur and later on an Army base.
The success of the campaign was attributed to better coordination between the Syrian opposition's backers. Still, the operation resulted in a high attrition rate for both sides.
The offensive
Initial rebel assault
On 28 July 2015, rebels launched an assault to capture the remaining areas surrounding Jisr al-Shugur. Two hours later, rebels had captured the strategic hills of Tal Khattab, Tal Awar and Tal Hamka; along with the towns of Frikka, Mushayrafah, Salat Al-Zuhour and
Zayzun
Zayzun ( ar, زيزون) is a Syrian village located in Al-Ziyarah Nahiyah in Al-Suqaylabiyah District, Hama. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Zayzun had a population of 1944 in the 2004 census.
See also
*Zeyzoun Dam ...
. The Army retreated to the south in order to reinforce its positions at
Tal Wassit and Tal Sheikh Elyas. The Army responded with 160 airstrikes and dozens of shells and missiles. According to the
SOHR
, image = Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Logo.jpg
, image_size = 200px
, caption = The logo of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
, type = NGO
, founded_date =
, founder ...
, about 90 government fighters were killed or wounded during the assault, while 37 rebels (15 non-Syrian; including a Jordanian leader) were killed.
Army counter-attack
Three days later on 1 August, the military recaptured Ziyadia and Zayzun, including its power station. In addition, they captured the towns of
Khirbat al-Naqus and
Mansura and its surrounding areas. The advances came after the Air Force had conducted more than 270 air-strikes on rebel positions over four days. The fighting had left 39 combatants dead, including 20 soldiers and 19 rebels.
On 2 August, government troops managed to recapture the Frikkah area, Khirbat al-Naqus, Mansura, al-Ziyadiyyah, Zayzun power plant and its dam, Tal Awar,
Al-Ziyarah area and other areas on the outskirts of Idlib governorate and al-Ghab Plain. The fighting in the preceding 72 hours left more than 115 rebels and 42 government fighters dead.
Later that day, rebels launched a counter-attack and managed to recapture parts of Frikkah. However, this claim was refuted by pro-government outlet Al-Masdar, which stated that the Army never re-entered Frikkah.
On 3 August, rebels recaptured Tal Awar and Frikkah, after the Army retreated from them,
while the Army recaptured Tal Hamka. At least 30 government fighters and 16 rebels were killed.
According to Al-Masdar, the Army repelled an attack on Fawru. Meanwhile, a Syrian warplane crashed inside Ariha, leaving a number of casualties among civilians. The fate of its crew was unclear.
Rebels regain ground
On 5 August, rebels launched a counter-offensive and advanced towards the Army operation command center in
Jurin and recaptured several positions in the Al-Ghab plain, including Tal Hamka, Tal Awar, the Zayzun thermal plant and Zayzun. At least 12 government fighters and 9 rebels were killed, while a number of armoured vehicles and tanks were destroyed by
BGM-71 TOW
The BGM-71 TOW ("Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided") is an American anti-tank missile. TOW replaced much smaller missiles like the SS.10 and ENTAC, offering roughly twice the effective range, a more powerful warhead, and a greatly ...
missiles.
Later that day, rebels captured
al-Bahsa village and advanced into
Safsafa, killing 17 government fighters, while losing 19 fighters.
On 6 August, the Army launched counter-attacks on al-Bahsa, Mansura and Tal Awar, recapturing al-Bahsa and Mansura. 29 government fighters and 35 rebels were killed since 5 August.
On 7 August, rebels captured
Qarqur
Qarqur ( ar, قرقور, also spelled Qarqar or Karkour) is a village in northern Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate, located northwest of Hama. It is situated in the al-Ghab plain, on the eastern bank of the Orontes River. Nearby ...
, its hill and
Mashik.
The military leader of "Qawat Al-Fahoud" (Cheetah Forces), Colonel ‘Ali Al-Hajji was killed, while the leader of “Qawat Al-Nimr” (Tiger Forces), Colonel Suheil Al-Hassan was wounded in a rebel mortar attack on a government military camp.
A leading al-Nusra Front leader was also killed. Later that day, government forces reportedly recaptured Mashik and most of Qarqur. Pro-government sources also confirmed that al-Bahsa was back in rebel hands at that time. The SOHR reported that government forces recaptured large parts of al-Mshek and al-Bahsa during the counter-attack.
On 9 August, rebels recaptured Mansura, al-Ziyara, the silos area, Tal Wassit, al-Tanmia checkpoint and a number of military vehicles (including tanks). The Army conducted over 80 airstrikes, covering the retreat of the government forces in the area. The rebels lost 33 fighters during the assault.
On 10 August, over 90 airstrikes were conducted on villages and towns in the al-Ghab plain, killing a number of rebels. The SOHR reported that one of these villages was Khirbat al-Naqus, which was previously not mentioned as captured by the rebels the day before.
On 14 August, the rebels blew up two bridges at al-Ziyara, in the al-Ghab plain, to prevent future government advancements. That day, five soldiers were executed by the rebels in Idlib city, in protest of the mistreatment of rebel prisoners in Hama Central Prison.
Attacks and counter-attacks continue
![Idlib Governorate (August 30 2015)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Idlib_Governorate_%28August_30_2015%29.svg)
On 18 August, the military launched a new counter-offensive recapturing several villages, including Khirbat al-Naqus, al-Ziyara, Mansura and Tal Wassit. Later, they also captured Msheek and advanced in al-Qahera. Two days later, government forces also secured the southern sector of Qarqur.
On 25 August, rebels launched a new counter-attack and recaptured al-Ziyara, al-Msheek, Mansura, Tal Wassit and Khirbat Al-Naqus, as the Syrian Army retreated with little resistance.
At least 14 soldiers were killed,
while government forces also lost a number of military vehicles, including tanks. On the same day, the Syrian Armed Forces were attempting to recapture the contested town of Al-Bahsa, which was 60 percent under their control
(they ended up recapturing it on 10 October).
On 28 August, the Army again launched a counter-attack and recaptured Khirbat Al-Naqus. According to
Al-Masdar News
''Al-Masdar News'' (sometimes abbreviated ''AMN'') ( ar, المصدر نيوز) is an online newspaper founded by Leith Abou Fadel. Al-Masdar is Arabic for "the source". ''Al-Masdar''s coverage focuses largely on conflict zones in the Middle E ...
, the "Tiger Force" pulled back its forces during the last rebel counter-attack and did not participate.
Aftermath
On 10 October, the Syrian Armed Forces were able to take full-control of the town of Fawru.
See also
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Al-Ghab offensive 2015 July 2015-present
Military operations of the Syrian civil war in 2015
Hama Governorate in the Syrian civil war
Idlib Governorate in the Syrian civil war
Military operations of the Syrian civil war involving the Free Syrian Army
Military operations of the Syrian civil war involving the al-Nusra Front
Military operations of the Syrian civil war involving the Syrian government
Military operations of the Syrian civil war involving Hezbollah
Military operations of the Syrian civil war involving Quds Force