The Syrian army withdraws troops from Aleppo to prepare a counteroffensive – POLITICO

The surprise attack on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government forces marks the heaviest fighting in northwestern Syria since 2020, when Russia and Turkey negotiated an agreement to limit hostilities. The agreement allowed Syrian government forces to regain territories previously under opposition control.

In the wake of the rebel attack, the Syrian Interim Government (SIG), the interim governing body in areas of northern Syria no longer under the control of the Assad regime, announced on Saturday the launch of a new military operation aimed at “liberating the areas seized by the Assad regime and terrorist militias PKK/PYD.”

“The liberation achieved today is a strategic step towards achieving the ultimate goal of liberating the entire territory of Syria from the grip of the regime and the terrorist and separatist militias that want to divide our country and plunder its resources,” he added. – SIG said in a statement.