Syrian Militants Press Lightning Advance; Damascus ‘On Verge of Being Surrounded’

Syrian government officials say the rebels will not penetrate the city’s defensive line.

Syrian rebels led by Islamist militants entered the central city of Homs on December 7 and began to encircle the capital city of Damascus, according to reports from inside the embattled country. Amid reports that Russian and Iranian assets there have dwindled considerably, authorities within the Syrian government say that the city is heavily fortified and impenetrable.

The situation continues to unfold rapidly, a security source told Solder of Fortune. “It’s fluid and chaotic,” but certain developments are being consistently reported, he said. “Among them, Hama has fallen, and Damascus soon will follow. The capital is on the verge of being surrounded.”

Syrian officials say otherwise.

Government security forces have created a “very strong” military cordon around the country’s capital and no one will be able to get through it, officials said.

“No one… can penetrate this defensive line that we, the armed forces, are building,” interior minister Mohammed al-Rahmoun said while appearing on state TV.

The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) militant group captured the key city on December 5, shortly after taking over Aleppo.

The fall of Hama marks a “significant turning point” in the country’s 13-year civil war, and shows that the offensive will continue, the security source told Solder of Fortune. “It’s not just a flare-up,” the London-based source said.

The unexpected assault casts a stark spotlight on the Syrian armed forces under President Bashar Assad. The timing is notable, as Assad’s key allies — Iran, its proxy forces, and Russia — are embroiled in their own conflicts, potentially straining their ability to provide critical support.

READ MORE about recent military action in Syria.

The fighting has forced thousands of residents to flee war-torn areas, the source told Soldier of Fortune on Saturday.

Experts have linked the latest developments in Aleppo to shifting dynamics elsewhere in the Middle East.

“Since 2016, those defending Aleppo were Iran and Hezbollah, but both are now in vastly different circumstances,” said Ahmed Rahal, a former Syrian military general who defected from the army in 2012. He now works as a military analyst in Istanbul.

“Iran is currently preoccupied with its conflict with Israel, and Hezbollah has nearly been decimated [by Israel],” he told VOA. “The regime is unable to defend Aleppo.”

The terror group no longer can be counted upon to pick up the fight, a U.S.-based security source told Soldier of Fortune.

“Hezbollah has been pushed to the wall,” the source said.

As fighting on the ground and rebel gains intensified, the foreign ministers of Russia, Iran, and Turkey held emergency talks in Doha, Qatar, on December 7 calling for an end to hostilities in the most serious challenge to Assad’s rule in years.

– Based on reports from multiple sources, including VOA, RFE/RL; and from security contacts in London and the U.S.