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Voiceover by Harold Hoover
On Wednesday, the Syrian Arab Army and the National Defense Forces (NDF) began a direct storm of the ISIS—held town of Sukhna at the Palmyra-Deir Ezzor highway.
Government forces captured the ISIS fortifications south and west of the town, stormed the southwestern entrance of the town, and captured several buildings. Syrian and Russian warplanes and attack helicopters supported the advance.
According to reports, a majority of the ISIS fighters withdrew from Sukhna last week, but dozens of them decided to stay in the town to defend it. Most of these fighters are suicide bombers and snipers.
On Thursday, clashes in the area continued as government forces made additional efforts towards securing the town. If the SAA and NDF are able to fully control the Sukhna area, government forces will be able to cut off supply lines leading to a collapse of the entire ISIS defense in the eastern Hama countryside.
The ISIS-linked News Agency Amaq claimed on Thursday that 32 Syrian soldiers were killed as a result of an attack on SAA positions east of Salamyah. According to Amaq, ISIS fighters captured 6 SAA checkpoints near Al-Mafkar village and an SAA HQ in the Olive Press. During the attack, ISIS fighters also managed to capture a tank, two bulldozers, two 23mm guns, two cars loaded with ammunition, and several vehicles.
Opposition sources claimed that ISIS attacked an SAA position south of Ithryiah with a VBIED, killing 30 Syrian soldiers. Pro-government sources denied these claims.
The Syrian Defense Ministry announced that 330 vehicles, 3 battle tanks, 11 artillery pieces, 5 machine guns, 12 headquarters, and 3 weapons and munition depots belonging to ISIS were destroyed during the recent operations near the Euphrates River in the southern Raqqah countryside. Government forces are now developing momentum in an attempt to consolidate the recent gains and to take control over additional important points in the area.
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) announced that its special operations forces infiltrated the Mallah area in western Aleppo and killed some 20 pro-government fighters, injured 10 others, and damaged a BMP vehicle. According to pro-government sources, the SAA and NDF repelled the infiltration attempt and inflicted heavy casualties upon the terrorists.
The Syrian government has reportedly disbanded the Desert Hawks Brigade (Liwa Suqur al-Sahara). The decision followed a series of the questionable events linked to the group. The Desert Hawks Brigade had been temporarily deployed to the eastern Hama countryside for a widely-expected operation to liberate the ISIS-held town of Uqayribat. However, the brigade withdrew from the area after a few days of fighting. According to local sources, tensions with the SAA and other pro-government units were the reason behind the decision.
Members of the Desert Hawks Brigade will reportedly have an opportunity to join the SAA 5th Assault Corps, the Qalamoun Shield Forces, or other pro-government units. The Desert Hawks Brigade’s commander, Colonel Mohammad Jaber allegedly left Syria and is now in Russia where he and his brother, Aymen al-Jaber, have some property.
Liberating Maadan or Straight to Deir Ezzor?
“… the SAA and allies have crossed DeZ Province days ago and are in fact with the control of the red box below, mostly small farms. That places the SAA and allies 40 kms from DeZ and that has not changed.
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=pt&lat=35.692995&lon=39.600906&z=11&m=b&gz=0;395473480;355704938;899505;1222219;1332092;979598;432586;0;0;223375
“… [creating a new pocket around Maadan] does not guarantee easy advance to DeZ without the control of Jabal Fusayyat and the Bishri triangle, but in time it is all coming together.
The advance toward DeZ will take longer due to the split in the Tiger Forces but not much once all area in and around Sukhana is safe thus creating the conditions to move on a stronger footing toward DeZ after Fusayyat and the Bishri triangle are secured.
There are theories that advancing toward DeZ without clearing the Hama/Homs pocket is suicide, it is a long standing theory since the time Palmyra was recaptured for the 2nd time, but at that time the flanks for the SAA were wide open for a spearhead attack through the highway, but then since early 2017 the SAA and allies have liberated and secure a lot of ground from ISIS all over the country thus securing the battlefield for a much safer approach toward DeZ, of course there are risks at the Ithriyah-Resafa road, or even at the Homs-Palmyra-al Sukhanah road, but hopefully, in time, when the Bishri mountain complex is safe and secured, the supply lines to DeZ can be established and secured against ISIS raids from Hama/Homs pocket and from the lower Euphrates ISIS presence.”
“… With the Sabkhah pocket done, the allied forces have the time and forces to create a new pocket around Maadan and move on to DeZ.
Worth noting though, that Kulayb Hammah plateau is the border line that the SDF reached from the left bank of the Euphrates, meaning any advance from this point toward DeZ following the Euphrates river will have ISIS on the other side as well, which increases the risk for flanking, but trust the options are multiple for the SAA and allies to continue to push, the question is : would they try to liberate Maadan first or encircle it and push to DeZ ?”
Turkey One Step Closer To Future SCO membership?
“… (RT) Turkey has vowed to root out militants plotting against China as the two countries pledged to collaborate on a security issue that had been a source of friction. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Thursday in Beijing that Turkey would treat matters of China’s security as its own, signalling close cooperation and a tougher stance against suspected Uighur militants hailing from China’s Xinjiang region. Uighurs share cultural and linguistic ties with Turks and many have sought asylum in Turkey. ”