Daraa and As-Suwayda offensive (June 2015)
Daraa and As-Suwayda offensive (June 2015) | |||||||||
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Part of the Syrian Civil War | |||||||||
Map showing the rebel advances and government counterattack | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
Free Syrian Army Islamic Front[1] |
National Defense Force
Jaysh al-Muwahhideen[2] | ||||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
Col. Ziad Salamat (WIA)[8] Lt. Col. Najm[9] |
Brig. Gen. Issam Zahreddine[10] Brig. Gen. Abdul-karim al-Haimi[11] (al-Thula airbase commander) Brigade 52 garrison commander Col. Loay al-Salem †[12] (head air intelligence in as-Suwayda) Col. Wael Kamel Hadad †[13] | ||||||||
Units involved | |||||||||
Ahrar ash-Sham[15] |
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Strength | |||||||||
2,000 (Southern Front claim)[17] | Unknown | ||||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||||
36 killed (SOHR claim)[18][19] 125+ killed (government claim)[20][21] |
28 killed and 3 captured (SOHR claim)[18][22] 83 killed (Southern Front claim)[17] 1 Sukhoi Su-24 aircraft lost[23] 7 BMP-1s & 3 T-72 tanks captured[24] |
The Daraa and As-Suwayda offensive (June 2015) (titled "The battle of the crushing of the tyrants" by the Southern Front)
The offensive
Brigade 52 base
On 9 June, the
al-Thula airbase
On 10 June, rebels announced the start of the battle for the al-Thula airbase in western As-Suwayda Governorate (which has a mostly Druze population, and few Muslims) and began targeting it with mortars and artillery.[34] Rebels seized the al-Koum checkpoint and Sakakah village to the east of Brigade 52 and near the airbase.[3]
By 11 June, rebels had captured parts of al-Thula airbase, with a Southern Front spokesman stating that they expected to capture the entire base by the end of the day.
The Southern Front claimed that they pulled out of al-Thula airbase due to ongoing negotiations with the Druze community and the killing of 23 Druze villagers in Idlib, which had complicated the situation.[38] Several days later, a new claim, by the pro-opposition Syrian Mirror, asserted that the assault was called off after the Southern Front operations room in Jordan disagreed with the direction of the offensive, having not green-lighted the taking of al-Thula airbase. Southern Front member's wages were stopped to convince them to cease the attack.[39] Rebels saw Druze involvement in the government militias as key to stopping the opposition advance on the airbase, while a leader of a group leading the attack asserted Assad was exploiting sectarianism and that the Druze know the "regime is collapsing and cannot protect them", while also claiming that there was coordination between the opposition and "the sheikhs of Sweida".[40]
Meanwhile, on 11 June, rebels of the Southern Front reportedly shot down a SyAAF MiG passing over the Brigade 52 base with AA fire.[33] State TV denied the MiG was shot down and instead said it crashed due to a technical failure and that the pilot successfully managed to eject himself.[41] The SOHR also reported on conflicting accounts of what caused the crash and the fate of the pilot.[42] Footage later emerged of opposition forces using a SA-7 MANPADS.[43]
On 14 June 17 Daraa-based rebel groups belonging to the Free Syrian Army and Islamic Front signed a statement in which they assured the Druze that they weren't after a sectarian war.[44] Major Essam al-Rayes stated that there would be further attempts to control the airbase, but no plans to seize areas of Sweida province.[45]
On 15 June, the SAA, backed by Druze militia, repelled another rebel assault on the airbase, leaving 25 rebels dead,[21] after rebels initially advanced into the airbase. According to the SOHR, about 20 government fighters were killed and wounded in the attack,[46] while the SAA reported seven soldiers and officers killed, including Colonel Loay al-Salem (head of the air intelligence in as-Suwayda)[12] and 23 wounded that day.[47] The following day, the rebels announced they had halted their operations at al-Thula.[39]
In the end, despite seizing the Brigade 52 base,[5] the rebels failed to capture the main road to the capital Damascus.[48]
Army counter-attack
On 17 June, Druze militia, backed by the 5th Armored Division, launched a counter-attack on rebel positions near the al-Thala airbase and recaptured Sakakah and its hill by the next day.[49][4]
On 27 June, government forces advanced near Tell Sheikh Hussein, to the south of the airbase,[50] and reportedly captured the hill.[51]
Strategic analysis
The Brigade 52 base has been described as the "most important", largest and heavily-equipped army base in Daraa province, as well as a "key military base". Its capture would bring the rebels "very close" to the al-Thula airbase.
Reactions
Domestic reaction
International reaction
- Lebanon – The killing of the 20 Druze villagers in Idlib prompted the Lebanese Druze party chief and former government minister Wiam Wahhab to urge the Druze to form an armed force to defend their community in an angry televised speech saying "We will not accept to sell Druze blood!". His call was much in line with that of the Syrian Druze spiritual leader. Lebanon's most influential Druze leader, Walid Jumblatt, rejected the idea, calling instead for an emergency meeting of a Druze religious council.[56] Jumblatt urged the Druze in southern Syria to abandon the Syrian government[58] and unite with other communities, stating that "reconciliation with the people of Houran [a region of Daraa]" would protect them from "dangers".[59]
See also
- Battle of Nasib Border Crossing
- Battle of Bosra (2015)
- Jaysh al-Muwahhideen
- Druze in Syria
References
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- ^ a b Leith Fadel. "Druze from Sweida Mobilize to Route the Militants at Tha'lah Airbase". Al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 16 April 2019. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ a b Zen Adra. "Syria's Southern Front: Al Nusra pushes east, eye on key airbase". Al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 11 December 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ a b "Regime forces advances west of al-Tha'la military airport". Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. 20 June 2015.
- ^ a b c d Perry, Tom; al-Khalidi, Suleiman (11 June 2015). "Syrian rebels seize parts of air base in south: monitor". Reuters. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
- ^ a b "Syria clashes rage over army airbase in Sweida". Al Jazeera. 12 June 2015. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ a b c "Syria army 'regains control of southern airbase'". AFP. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
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State media also posted pictures claiming to be of Syrian troops, including the prominent commander General Issam Zahreddine, in the village of Thala close to the base.
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- ^ a b c Naylor, Hugh (10 June 2015). "Moderate rebels take key southern base in Syria, dealing blow to Assad". The Washington Post. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
Emile Hokayem, a Middle East analyst at the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, said the fall of Brigade 52 weakens government defenses around the capital [...] "The Southern Front is now showing itself as an increasingly effective buffer against Islamist rebels as well as an effective means for applying pressure on the Assad regime," Hokayem said. The rebels control about 70 percent of Daraa and are poised to seize the provincial capital from Assad's forces, he said.
- ^ a b c sohranas (11 June 2015). "Exchange of detainees for bodies of the regime forces took place in Daraa, while more civilians killed in the countryside of Daraa". Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ sohranas (11 June 2015). "The regime forces shell al- Zabadani and the Eastern Ghouta, while a shell wounds some people in the center of Damascus". Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ a b h.said (12 June 2015). "The army establishes control over more areas in Qalamoun, intensifies operations in southern region".
- ^ a b Leith Fadel (14 June 2015). "Syrian Armed Forces and Druze Militia Beat Back Rebel Forces at Tha'lah Airbase". Al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 13 October 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
- ^ a b Master (10 June 2015). "About 30 regime forces killed in Dar'a". Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. Retrieved 12 June 2015.
- ^ Alessandria Masi (11 June 2015). "Syrian Rebel Gains In Daraa Put Opposition And Regime In A Tug-Of-War For Syria's Druze Population". International Business Times. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ a b c "In Southern Syria, a Rebel Offensive Begins". Stratfor. 10 June 2015. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
The government in Damascus was broadly aware of an impending assault on their southern positions and had been preparing defenses for months. The fact that the 52nd Mechanized Brigade collapsed quickly despite advanced planning indicates the degree to which the Syrian military has been weakened. The rebels seized considerable equipment and weaponry from the base, including at least seven BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles and several T-72 tanks, as well as weapons and munitions.
- ^ "Syrian military and Druze allies join forces to fend off 'terrorists'". The Los Angeles Times. 21 June 2015. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
The opposition labeled the attack "the battle of the crushing of the tyrants"
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- ^ a b c sohranas (9 June 2015). "The rebel and Islamic battalions comb the Brigade 52 after seizing most of it". Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
- ^ a b Syrian rebels capture army base in south: rebels, monitor. Reuters. 9 June 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
- ^ Charles Lister [@Charles_Lister] (10 June 2015). "Big: Southern Front has French APILAS anti-tank weapons in Deraa. Stocked by Jordan & Saudi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rxf74U5L6D0 …" (Tweet). Retrieved 11 June 2015 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b Perry, Tom (11 June 2015). "Rebels say they shoot down Syrian military jet in south". Reuters. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
- ^ "فصائل إسلامية ومقاتلة تعلن عن معركة جديدة للسيطرة على خاصرة مدينة السويداء وقصف يستهدف مطار الثعلة". SOHR. Retrieved 10 June 2015.
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Groups fighting to topple Assad say he is trying to exploit sectarian fear to shore up his support base. Bashar al-Zoubi, the head of a rebel group involved in the battle for the army base, said those attempts would fail, adding that the Druze know the "regime is collapsing and cannot protect them" [...] he added that there was "coordination between us and the sheikhs of Sweida" - a reference to community elders whom he did not identify.
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There is a target to control the whole airbase, but that will depend upon the timing and the right time to attack and to get inside the airport again," added Reyes [...] "We are not working with them, and they are not allowed to work with us,
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