Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)

Battle of Aleppo (2012)
Part of the Syrian Civil War
Date 19 July 2012 (2012-07-19) – ongoing Location Aleppo, Syria Result Ongoing FSA claims to be in control of 65% of Aleppo SLA and Kurdish YPG claim control of several other districts
Belligerents
Free Syrian Army Syrian Liberation Army Mujahideen Arhar al-Sham Foreign fighters Kurdish YPG	Syrian Armed Forces Syrian Police Shabiha Al-Berri tribe Local Kurdish militia File:Hezbollah Flag.jpg Hezbollah Iran
Commanders and leaders
Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi Abu Abdu Bakri (Salaheddine district)	Ali Abdullah Ayyoub Ali Mohamed Hamdan Yousef Ismail Zaino Berri (al-Berri Shabiha leader) †
Units involved
18 battalions Unity Brigade Sham Falcons Nour al-Haq Brigade	11 Division 18 Division Republican Guard
Strength
2,000–7,000 fighters (opposition claims) 6,000–8,000 fighters (government claims)	20,000 soldiers (1,500 Shabiha) 100 tanks and 400 armored personnel carriers
Casualties and losses
188 killed (opposition claims) Hundreds killed, 22+ technicals destroyed (government claims)	175 killed, 120–180 captured, 19–42 AFVs destroyed and 9–14 captured 1 MiG jet destroyed (opposition claims)
255 civilians killed

The Battle of Aleppo, also called The Mother of All Battles, is an ongoing military confrontation in Aleppo, Syria between the Free Syrian Army and the Syrian military. The battle began on 19 July 2012 as a part of the Syrian civil war. Clashes began with an offensive by the Free Syrian Army against the city, which is the largest in Syria and holds great strategic and economic importance.

Background

Large demonstrations against the government took place in Aleppo on 20 July. North of Aleppo city, the Free Syrian Army had already established control of several cities and towns, including Tal Rifaat, Azaz and Al-Bab. The FSA had previously reached within nine miles of Aleppo. The battle began when dozens of FSA rebels penetrated deep inside the city. Residents had painted walls with the pre-Ba'athist flag, the symbol of the revolution.

Battle

Rebel attack

Violent clashes began on 19 July in several Aleppo districts. On 20 July, according to a report from Bloomberg news, the military shelled the city, a Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) spokesperson said in an e-mail that 190 civilians and at least 43 Syrian soldiers were killed and a Local Coordination Committee (LCCs) spokesperson added that "dozens of missiles fell in the city, and many houses were destroyed and flattened." Five explosions were heard in Aleppo early the next morning.

On 21 July, fighting was still raging in the southwestern Salaheddine district, with the army trying to storm it with troops and armored vehicles. Meanwhile clashes started in the poorer, tribal northeastern district of al-Sakhour. Hundreds of families were forced to flee as the commercial city had been slowly turned into a war zone. Violent clashes also took place in the northeastern Haydariya area in Aleppo. The head of intelligence in Aleppo, Major General Mohamed Muflih, reportedly defected to the opposition and went to Turkey.

On 22 July, the fourth day of major fighting in Aleppo, the Syrian army started to push into the Salaheddine district, which had been in rebel hands for two days, with armoured vehicles. Battles took place near the main intelligence headquarters of Aleppo. It was reported that rebels controlled three neighbourhoods in Aleppo. The al-Zabadia police station and the immigration and passport building in Aleppo saw clashes as well as the areas of Saif al-Dawla, al-Jameeliya and al-Meridian. It was further reported that the FSA had set up checkpoints in the city. A brigadier general defected inside Aleppo. According to The Guardian UK, General Adelnasser Ferzat made a video address in fluent Russian to Russia, urging Russia to stop backing Assad and back "freedom" and the rebels' side.

On 23 July, renewed fighting in Aleppo was reported, with rebel fighters attacking the main TV station of the city. The Free Syrian Army aired a live steam video on Al Jazeera showing their fighters moving freely in the Tareeq al-Bab district of Aleppo city. 33 people were reportedly killed in the city in the previous two days. State media reported that dozens of rebels had been killed by the Syrian Army north of Aleppo, among them Mahmoud al-Ashqar, leader of a rebel group. A rebel commander inside Aleppo told Al-Jazeera via Skype that his fighters had captured five districts in the city, but that these districts were still being heavily shelled by artillery and attack helicopters. During the night, eight people were reported killed at Aleppo central prison. The Syrian National Council said that security forces "opened fire with bullets and tear gas on the detainees at Aleppo central prison in response to a peaceful sit-in organised by prisoners because of the great injustice of which they are victims," and that a fire broke out at the prison. Another report said that 15 prisoners were killed and over 40 were injured, according to Al Arabiya who were citing activists at the Aleppo Revolution Council. Furthermore, the group also said that security forces refused to hand over the dead bodies to relatives and that heavy clashes between the FSA and security forces took place around the prison after the killings.

Fighting intensifies and Army reinforcements sent

On 24 July, FSA fighters began a new offensive in Aleppo, aimed at taking the city centre. Heavy clashes broke out near the gates of the Old city between rebel fighters and government forces. Also, a resident of the Aleppo suburb of al-Sahkour said that the FSA had set up checkpoints in the district. In addition, Al-Arabiya reported about clashes between rebels and army soldiers in the Aleppo neighborhood of Al-Arqoub. The Sham news network said that 30 security force members were killed or injured and three tanks destroyed in a neighbourhood of Aleppo the previous day. Later during the day, for the first time since the beginning of the civil war in Syria, Syrian war planes bombed Aleppo (with videos showing L-39 attack aircraft over the city). The coordinated attack started with a 10-minute artillery attack on the eastern Tariq al-Bab district, after which, fighter jets hit rebel positions, reportedly leaving dozens of fighters and civilians dead. Government soldiers and rebels were still engaged in heavy fighting near the Old city, while the Free Syrian Army stated it had control of at least six districts of Aleppo, a claim partially supported by a BBC journalist outside Aleppo. Two rebels were reported killed during the day. Opposition activists stated that thousands of government troop reinforcements were moving from Idlib toward Aleppo. One of the reinforcement's convoys was attacked with a roadside bomb while it was on its way to the city, killing eight soldiers.

On 25 July, a BBC reporter inside Aleppo confirmed that parts of the city (most notably the eastern suburbs) were under Free Syrian Army control. Heavy fighting raged at a police station in the city, during which three rebels were killed. The rebels managed to capture and burn the station in the end. Meanwhile, FSA commanders called on rebels to attack the approaching Syrian Army of 2,000 soldiers. Rebels from all over Aleppo governorate were reported to be gathering ammunition and moving towards Aleppo. Two alleged pro-government Shabiha militiamen, who were captured by the rebels, were executed in the Salaheddin district.

On 26 July, the Free Syrian Army claimed to be in control of 40–50% of Aleppo city. Government forces bombarded rebel-held districts with fighter planes, helicopters and artillery. Two rebel fighters were killed during clashes. Rebels were waiting for the military assault, most of them expecting to die in the battle. Among the government troop reinforcements that were massing on the outskirts of Aleppo were also special forces units. The Syrian Army had reportedly amassed 10,000 soldiers around Aleppo and its countryside.

On 27 July, rebels captured a military base in Aleppo's city centre along with 100 soldiers and pro-government militia. It was reported that 15 people were killed by helicopters and bombs in the al-Fardous district. An activist, Omar, said that "We woke up to a huge massacre this morning at 7am. Fifteen people were killed as a result of the regime forces' bombs and helicopters ... I witnessed the massacre myself and helped rescue 25 injured people. I carried bloodied body parts in my own hands. The bombing stopped at 10am." and the FSA later took control of the Sour al-Hajj roundabout in the district, capturing a five-storey building which was holding 75 detainees. State TV reported that five rebel pick-up trucks mounted with machine guns ("technicals"), that were heading from the countryside towards Aleppo, were attacked and destroyed by special forces units, killing and wounding a number of rebel fighters. A rebel commander partially confirmed this by saying opposition forces had skirmished with the military in the areas surrounding the city. Meanwhile, six soldiers were killed during clashes with a Kurdish rebel force, the YPG, who attacked them in retaliation after government troops attacked their convoy on the airport road the previous day, killing three and wounding 11 YPG members.

Salaheddin raid

On the morning of 28 July, the Syrian Army started an attack against the Salaheddin district, which held the largest concentration of rebels. The assault commenced with an eight-hour artillery bombardment, which started at four in the morning, after which tanks and ground troops moved in. An estimated 80–100 tanks were seen on the southern outskirts of the city before the attack started. The opposition stated that 12 rebels and 10 soldiers were killed during the fighting, that dozens of soldiers were wounded, and that 8–10 tanks and armored vehicles were destroyed. They also confirmed that one of the killed rebel fighters was a battalion commander. Meanwhile, rebels from Salaheddin attacked a police station in the city center where 50–100 government troops were holding out for the past three days, in an attempt to link up with opposition forces in the northeastern Sakhur district six kilometers away. By the end of the day, the rebels had repelled the assault with government troops pulling back and the bombardment resuming.

On 29 July, a Turkish journalist reported that Syrian soldiers defected to the opposition in Aleppo with four tanks. Luke Harding from the Guardian reported that a rebel commander was pessimistic about the chances of victory for the rebels. In the evening, state media reported that the Salaheddin district was recaptured by the Army; however, journalists were not able to reach it and confirm the report. Opposition SOHR activists said that fighting was still ongoing in the district. However, Colonel Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi, head of the Free Syrian Army military council of Aleppo, denied the report and insisted government troops had "not progressed one meter." "We launched a new assault from Salaheddin during the night, and we destroyed four tanks," the rebel commander told AFP by phone." Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, said that government forces were "just reaching the outskirts of the [Salaheddin] neighborhood."

Continued rebel push

On 30 July, SOHR said that clashes erupted in the early morning near the Air Force intelligence headquarters in Aleppo's Zahraa district. Meanwhile, a general in the FSA said that they had seized a strategic checkpoint 5 km from Aleppo after 10 hours of fighting. This meant that the FSA controlled a direct route between the Turkish border and the city of Aleppo. During the battle it was reported that four or five rebels and six soldiers were killed, with an additional 25 soldiers taken prisoner. An AFP journalist on the ground said that the rebels captured seven tanks and armoured vehicles, and destroyed an eighth vehicle. According to another rebel claim, four tanks were captured and two destroyed in the attack on the checkpoint. The BBC reported that three rebels commander were killed in Aleppo the same day, when one unit was pinned down by loyalist gunfire. FSA reinforcements manage to breakthrough and relieve their besieged comrades and pull back to safety.

On 31 July, Syrian state media reported that nine rebel technicals were destroyed in the Aleppo countryside and 26 rebels were killed in Aleppo city. Three other rebels were arrested when the army captured a truck loaded with explosive devices. One day earlier, four other rebel technicals had been destroyed. British Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt said that there was evidence government forces had recaptured some territory in the city, but the opposition forces were still strong.

Meanwhile, the rebels were still on the offensive when they launched an assault before dawn on a major Air Force Intelligence Unit in Aleppo's Zahraa district. Rebels armed with rocket propelled grenades attacked Aleppo's main military court as well as a police station and a branch of the ruling Baath Party in the city's southern Salhin district. Fighting continued in the Sallahaddin district. The opposition group, Syrian Observatory, reported that 40 policemen had been killed when rebels overran two police stations in fighting that also killed eight rebel fighters. A local Aleppo tribe, the al-Berri, carried out an assault on a rebel-held road, killing 15 rebels. It was reported that they executed people with their hands behind their backs near the airport.

The rebels also summarily executed 7-14 members of the al-Berri, including Zayno Berri, the leader of the tribe. Later during the day, the Free Syrian Army continued operating in the Salaheddine district, which the government admitted it did no longer fully control. "The regime has tried for three days to regain Saleheddine, but its attempts have failed and it has suffered heavy losses in human life, weapons and tanks, and it has been forced to withdraw," said Colonel Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi, head of the Joint Military Council, one of several rebel groups in Aleppo. He announced the FSA's primary objective was to secure the city centre "within days" by advancing district by district towards it, clearing out government forces. He confirmed that opposition troops controlled the southern and eastern parts of the city or, as he described it, as some 35%-40% of the city.

State media later reported that a rebel leader Ahmad Haj Qasem bin Abdul-Rahman was killed in Aleppo. It was also claimed that the Syrian Army ambushed a group of 400-500 rebels with 30 technicals in the town of Handarat, north of Aleppo, inflicting "heavy losses" on them and "destroying their cars". International media has however reported that the Syrian offensive has "stalled", amid Free Syrian Army gains in surrounding areas such as the capture of the city of Al Bab.

Reuters reported that intensive battles were still going on in Salaheddine and that neither the rebels or the government were in control. According to an NBC News report, the rebels acquired nearly two dozen surface-to-air missiles, which were delivered to them via neighbouring Turkey. However, a rebel FSA spokesman denied the report. CNN reported that rebels were using a school as a prison, housing captured pro-government militia members. United Nations observers in the area saw Syrian Air Force jets bombing rebel held districts on 1 August.

Wounded soldiers of the Syrian army were treated by doctors sympathetic to the rebels in hospitals, before judging them in Sharia law courts, and executing them if found guilty of having been responsible for killings by Sharia enforcers. Rebels were passing to each other a video where they executed a shabiha and slit his throat afterwards.

Amnesty International reported that it had found the Syrian army to be responsible for crimes against humanity in Aleppo.

On 1 August, the Syrian press agency reported that the Syrian Army continued to "hunt armed groups" in Handarat, killing and wounding "tens", including foreign Arabs, and destroying some technicals. The Syrian Observatory confirmed the fighting in the Handarat area and said that a rebel battalion commander was killed in the clashes. The Sunni Al-Berri tribe announced that they would avenge their leader Zaino Berri, who was executed by the rebels. The Syrian Observatory confirmed that Berri tribesmen joined the fight in Aleppo after the rebel execution of Zaino Berri the previous day, and that the fiercest clashes took place between the tribesmen and the rebels in the Bab al-Nayrab district southeast of the old city. Meanwhile, rebels claimed to have destroyed 20 tanks and be in control of all the entrances to Aleppo, 12 districts and the airport. However, this was not independently confirmed. They also said they held a field trial for the captured Al-Berri, claiming there were judges and lawyers present. Those found "guilty of killing" were executed, with the others kept prisoner. Members of the Berri tribe denied they were part of the Shabiha and said that they stayed out of the fight until the rebels attacked their quarter.

The United Nations mission in Syria said its observers had witnessed government fighter jets opening fire on Aleppo, and tanks appeared on the rebels' side for the first time.

On 2 August, rebels attacked the Minakh military air base (or Menagh), 30 kilometres northwest of Aleppo, with four tanks they captured at the Anadan checkpoint. Rebels claimed that one of the captured security stations housed a russian and three iranian snipers, who escaped. "The Russian must have been valuable. Right at the end they sent 200 soldiers to get him out. We keep on hearing about Russians and Iranians. Also, we think some Hizbollah people are here as well." Meanwhile, journalists said that Rumours of foreign mercenaries in the pay of Assad, as well as the imminent launch of chemical weapons, were rife in the city, with no detectable evidence for either. Also absent were the hundreds of foreign Islamists who were allgedly present in the city.

Stalemate

On 3 August, the Syrian army escalated its shelling of the city significantly, with the main battle, according to the UN, being expected to begin over the next few days. Locals observed reinforcements to the Syrian army along the highway and rebels stated that they lost 50 fighters in fighting in Salaheddine during the previous several days as the clashes became more intense. Meanwhile, the rebels pulled back from their attack on the air base, which they had been shelling the previous day, after they failed to capture it.

On 4 August, rebels attacked the state television building in the Izaa district, but retreated after receiving heavy shelling.

A senior government source stated that the main offensive had not begun yet and said that the Army had mobilized at least 20,000 soldiers for the battle. He also added that the other side (the rebels) were sending in reinforcements as well.

On 5 August, the deployement of Syrian troops was complete. Rebels in some areas were forced to retreat due to intensive shelling, which killed two fighters during the morning, and government troops penetrating their lines. Later, opposition forces were making attempts to push back the military once again.

On 6 August, the rebel colonel in charge of the Aleppo Battle, Abdul Gabbar Kaidi, stated that the rebels were still fighting in Salahaddine, but were not in control of the district. He said that they were still there attacking checkpoints, but that the district was destroyed and full of army tanks. The media center of the Taweed brigade, located in the Sakhour district, was destroyed by an airstrike, while rebels attacked a checkpoint near the Aleppo University dormitories, destroying two armored vehicles. Fighting erupted near the Aleppo presidential palace, and government forces shelled rebel positions at the Palace of Justice and in the Marjeh and Shaar districts, while another rebel commander was killed in fighting in the Salahaddine area. FSA also controlled the ground on at least two sides of the Citadel of Aleppo, which was meanwhile under the Syrian army control, and were preparing for an attack on it. Rebels in districts of Aleppo visited by Reuters journalists in recent days seemed battered, overwhelmed and running low on ammunition after days of intense shelling of their positions by tanks and heavy machinegun fire from helicopter gunships.

A survivor of a killing by pro-government militia said that 10 prisoners, with loose links to the rebels, were executed in Aleppo. He was found injured and taken to be treated in a rebel-held town.

On 7 August, the ancient citadel in the center of the city, manned by government troops, was under siege, but military armored units were inching forward through Salahaddine from the southwest. The Syrian Army encircled rebels fighters in Salahaddine from two sides, where the rebels were running low on ammunition. Military snipers deployed in areas of the district on rooftops and tanks were stationed in the streets. Snipers were also positioned in the local roundabout where they were stopping rebel reinforcements and supplies to enter the district. One commander stated that five of his fighters were killed the previous day and 20 were wounded, but that the FSA still held the main streets. The FSA had reportedly advanced to the Bab Jnein and Sabee Bahrat districts of Aleppo where there were fierce clashes. In the north of the city, rebels made an attempt to advance into a Kurdish district, which was reportedly sympathetic to the opposition. However, earlier reports suggested that Kurdish militias were mobilised at the request of the government in the area, which seemed apparent as the Kurds clashed with the FSA fighters who entered the district. Fighting ceased after military jets bombed the area, forcing rebel forces to retreat. At this point, opposition activists confirmed that Aleppo had been completely surrounded by government troops. Meanwhile, rebels claimed they had seized a key army checkpoint, which connects the north-eastern outskirts of Aleppo with the city center.

State television said that the military had engaged a force of 150 rebels during fighting in the al-Asilah district, killing "a large number" of them and destroying four technicals.

It was also confirmed that the jihadist group Arhar Al-Sham was fighting in Aleppo and cooperating with the rebels.

Army ground offensive

During the morning on 8 August, the Syrian Army entered Salahaddine. A security official confirmed that the army had launched the ground assault on the rebels. He said that the army was advancing and cutting the quarter in two horizontally. He added that there were pockets of resistance but that it would not take much time to take control. A rebel commander also confirmed to AFP that the Syrian Army penetrated Salahedine with tanks but said that violent fighting was ongoing. He added that the army was present in "less than 15%" of the district. Government troops advanced into Al-Malaab Street. SOHR also confirmed the army stormed Salahedinne and described the clashes as the most violent in the district since the beginning of the battle.

What followed was a confused situation with conflicting reports. A security source from the Army told Hezbollah media Al Manar that the district came under the control of the Army. A Reuters team went to the area to confirm the government take-over and found rebel checkpoints that were present in Salaheddine for the past week to had disappeared. One lone rebel they encountered told the team "We have retreated, get out of here", and said that opposition forces had abandoned their positions. A FSA activist, Joma Abu Ahmed, said rebels had fallen back to the nearby neighborhood of Saif al-Dawla, which was coming under attack by army tanks located inside Salaheddine.

Syrian state TV reported that the "majority of rebels" had been killed in the district and that the Army had entered other rebel-held areas. It also said that "dozens" of rebels were killed in Bal al Hadeed and Bab al Nayrab. A military source stated that the Army controlled three quarters of the district and the rest was falling quickly with the majority of the fighting centering on two strategically important streets. He also said a further objective for the government forces was the capture of the Saif al-Dawla district to the west.

Soon after, the opposition Syrian Revolution General Commission and the Free Syrian Army denied the report by Reuters that rebels had abandoned the frontline district.

Other rebels also told a Guardian reporter that they were still in control while the Syrian State TV announced that the Army took control of Salaheddine main square. The Aleppo rebel leader, Jabbar al-Oqaidi, told AFP via Skype that "it is not true the regime army has seized control of the district." But said there was a "barbaric and savage" attack. The Guardian's Martin Chulov, who is close to Salaheddine, denied government claims that rebels had been driven from the area. He said the rebels admitted to a withdrawal, but of about "15 or so metres", from only a couple of streets. Although, earlier the Guardian's sources stated that the rebels were withdrawing and government forces were advancing.

Abu Firas, a member of the rebel Free Syrian Army, said the insurgents had left only one building in Salahedin "We did not withdraw, our guys are still there and the situation is in our favour. We just left a building that we had in one of the streets, but it's not like we are retreating". Rebels told an Al Jazeera reporter that some rebels units retreated but that others were still fighting. The Syrian army had made some progress but rebels did not abandon Salaheddine, an Al Jazeera correspondent there said, claiming that the FSA destroyed five tanks during the fighting and one MiG jet at the airport. The correspondent later visited the district and said that "the FSA is in full control of the area".

At the end of the day, Wassel Ayub, commander of the Nour al-Haq Brigade, confirmed a loss of five streets in the district. But said that rebel forces managed to take back three streets out of the five seized by the Syrian army after a counter-attack led by the reinforcements of 700 fighters sent from other quarters of Aleppo. He added that helicopters, aircraft and artillery were pounding the rebels in the district.

The Guardian correspondent in the district called the situation a "stalemate", with the rebel army confirmed to have taken back all positions and territory lost earlier.Pro governement media reported that hundreds of rebels had been killed in Salahedin and that 70 were killed iin Mayer, Aleppo countryside. The Syrian Observatory said that at least 9 rebels had been killed in Aleppo this day. Guardian reporter told that rebels left part of Salaheddine at dusk.

On 9 August, a Syrian jet hit four rebel bases in Tel Rifaat, in Aleppo countryside. No casualties were mentioned.

The FSA now claim to control 65 per cent of Aleppo after managing to advance on positions around the citadel in the heart of the old city, though the castle and citadel square are still in government hands. Also, the army offensive on Salaheddin was repelled, with journalists touring the district to confirm it was still in rebel hands.

Foreign reactions

• France - The French Foreign Ministry said that "With the build-up of heavy weapons around Aleppo, Assad is preparing to carry out a fresh slaughter of his own people", while Italy and the UN peacekeeping chief also accused the government of preparing to massacre civilians.

• Russia - The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, stated "Our Western partners ... together with some of Syria's neighbours are essentially encouraging, supporting and directing an armed struggle against the regime". He also added that it would be unrealistic to expect Syrian forces not to fight when armed fighters were occupying Aleppo. "How can you hope that in such a situation, the government will simply reconcile itself and say 'All right, I was wrong. Come on and topple me, change the regime'?"

• Turkey - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged international action, saying it was not possible "to remain a spectator" to the government offensive on Aleppo. Reuters reported that Turkey had set up a base with allies Saudi Arabia and Qatar for the purpose of directing military and communications aid to the Free Syrian Army from the city of Adana. Reuters also quoted a Doha-based source which stated that Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia were providing weapons and training to the rebel fighters.

• United Kingdom - William Hague, the British Foreign Minister, also said that "the world must speak out to avert a massacre in Aleppo".

• United States - The United States said it feared a new massacre in Aleppo by the government: "This is the concern: that we will see a massacre in Aleppo and that's what the regime appears to be lining up for."

External links

• Satellite map of the Battle of Aleppo