Military Base in Syria Captured by Rebels; al-Assad Losing Grip of Idlib
DAMASCUS, SYRIA, April 28 (UPI) — The seizure of the al-Qarmeed military base on Monday gives the rebels a stronger foothold in the Idlib province. A suicide car bomb on the base initiated the rebel’s efforts to push Assad’s forces out of northern Syria.
Rebel factions, including U.S.-backed militants, Islamist groups and the al-Nusra Front, al-Qaida’s Syrian faction, loosely coordinated to seize the strategic town of Jisr al-Shoghour on Saturday, according to The Wall Street Journal.
“We are planning to liberate the entire province,” Baraa Halaq, a spokesman for Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham, said. “And once we are finished with Idlib, we will turn to Hama and [Latakia].”
The Hama and Latakia provinces are essential supporters of Assad’s regime. The al-Nusra Front and rebel forces have dubbed the campaign in Idlib the “Battle of Victory.”
Recent Syrian government airstrikes on a town near the Turkish border killed and wounded dozens of civilians on Sunday. The strikes hit Darkoush, a town in Idlib province, where the Syrian army has suffered a series of recent setbacks from the offensive by rebel forces.
At least 60 civilians were killed and wounded in the bombardment.
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