The situation is rapidly deteriorating in Syria's two major cities due to the occupation of the rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. Meanwhile, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs issued guidelines for people of Indian origin traveling to and staying in Syria late on Friday night.
Ministry of External Affairs said – In view of the current situation in Syria, Indian citizens are advised to avoid travel to Syria until further notice. Indian people living there have been appealed to come out only when absolutely necessary.
Indians living in Syria should stay in touch with the Indian Embassy in Damascus for updates on its emergency helpline number +963 993385973 (also on WhatsApp) and email id hoc.damascus@mea.gov.in, the ministry said.
In fact, in Syria, the rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) captured the city of Hama on Friday after the city of Alappa. HTS fighters then advanced towards the city of Homs. They have also captured some areas of Homs.
After capturing it completely, they could advance towards the capital city of Damascus. The Syrian army is trying to stop them. The army is also supported by the Russian Army. Rebel leader Abu Mohammad al-Jolani said that our aim is to overthrow the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs said – we are watching
External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday about the situation in Syria – We have noted the recent escalation of fighting in the northern part of Syria. We are closely monitoring the situation.
There are about 90 thousand Indian citizens in Syria, of which 14 are working in various UN organizations. Our mission is to protect our citizens.
According to the news agency AFP, the Syrian Army has destroyed the highway connecting Homs and Hama by carrying out airstrikes to stop the rebels. The city of Homs is only 40 km from Hama.
After the capture of Hama, people of the Shiite community living in the city of Homs have started fleeing the city. The Russian military has fired several missiles to intercept the HTS rebels, but they have not been able to stop their advance.
5 footage of Hama being captured by HTS rebels…
HTS fighters celebrate victory after conquering the city of Hama.
HTS fighters capture Syrian Army artillery in Hama.
Rebels captured the Assad government's weapons and air defense systems during their capture of Hama on December 5, 2024.
A broken statue of Hafez Assad, father of President Bashar Assad.
HTS chief said – Asad government's days of reckoning are left Following the capture of Hama, HTS commander Abu Mohammad al-Julani has delivered a message of victory. Julani said his aim is to topple the Assad government from Syria. He gave an interview to CNN from a secret location in Syria. Julani said that despotism will end in Syria and a people's government will be elected.
He said the Assad family has been ruling Syria for 40 years. But now the Assad government is dead. He survived for a while with the help of the Iranians. Later the Russians also helped him, but the reality is that the days of his rule are numbered.
Clashes between the army and HTS have been going on since November 27 in Syria. Rebels had earlier captured Syria's second-largest city, Aleppo, on December 1. So far 826 people have been killed in this war in Syria. This is the deadliest fighting in Syria since the civil war began in 2011.
Rebel fighters were fighting for Hama for 3 days
Rebel fighters have been fighting the army for the past 3 days to capture Hama. The army alleged that the insurgents launched suicide attacks to breach the defense line. During this period, many soldiers have been killed fighting the rebels.
Hama is the fourth largest city in Syria. Even during Syria's civil war that began in 2011, Hama was not captured by the rebels. Even then the city was under government control. In such a situation, the possession of the rebels this time is a big victory for them.
Earlier on Saturday, the rebels captured the city of Aleppo. It is the main trading center of Syria.
Rebel fighters celebrate after capturing Aleppo.
HTS became the largest organization in Syria
HTS has previously been linked to Al Qaeda. The Sunni group HTS is led by Abu Mohammad al-Julani. Julani has long been a threat to Syria's al-Assad government.
According to reports, Al-Julani was born in 1982 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. His father was a petroleum engineer there. In 1989, Julani's family returned to Syria and settled near Damascus.
After the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, Julani dropped out of medical studies and joined al-Qaeda. He was close to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in Al Qaeda. After Zarqawi's assassination in 2006, Julani spent time in Lebanon and Iraq.
Little is known about Julani before he joined Al Qaeda in 2003.
In 2006, Julani was arrested by the US Army in Iraq. He was released after 5 years in prison. After this he joined the Islamic State. Syria arrived in July 2011 amid protests against Assad. After this he formed Jabhat al-Nusra and waged war against the Assad government.
In 2017, al-Nusra formed Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) along with several other terrorist groups. HTS is now the most powerful rebel group in Syria. The group captured Idlib before capturing Aleppo and Hama. According to reports, there are 30 thousand fighters behind this organization. America included this organization in the terrorist list in 2018.
Will the Assad regime end?
Ibrahim al-Asil, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, DC, said the real fighting between Assad's forces and the rebel group has yet to begin. Assad is working on an old strategy, which has worked for him in the past. Retreat first, regroup, reinforce and then counterattack.
If the rebels are to win, they must know when to stop. Assad may also use chemical weapons to stop these rebels.
Civil war started in 2011 in Syria
The civil war in Syria started in 2011 with the Arab Spring. The people of Syria started protesting against the Bashar al-Assad government that has been in power for 10 years. After this, a rebel group called 'Free Syrian Army' was formed.
With the formation of a rebel group, a civil war broke out in Syria. The conflict escalated after America, Russia, Iran and Saudi Arabia joined. Meanwhile, the terrorist organization ISIS also spread its wings in Syria.
Since the 2020 ceasefire agreement, there have been only sporadic clashes here. According to a United Nations report, more than 3 lakh people were killed in the decade-long civil war. Apart from this, millions of people had to be displaced.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
