Syrian army determined to reclaim lost areas from rebels

DAMASCUS — Syria's defense minister emphasized on Thursday night the army's readiness to reclaim lost areas from rebel forces, describing the army's withdrawal from the central city of Hama as a "tactic".

It came as UN humanitarian officials said that they are gravely concerned about increased hostilities in the country's northwest.

Syria's Defense Minister Ali Mahmoud Abbas made a televised statement while addressing the ongoing battles against rebel groups.

"We have engaged in fierce and continuous battles against the most extreme terrorist organizations, which employ guerrilla tactics. This requires our armed forces to adopt appropriate strategies, including advances, withdrawals, and redeployments," Abbas said.

The minister said the recent redeployment of forces outside Hama was a "tactical" measure to protect civilians.

Abbas also accused the rebel groups of spreading disinformation aimed at creating chaos amid the army's withdrawal, calling on residents to rely solely on information disseminated through official channels.

The minister also expressed confidence in Syria's ability to overcome the current challenges. "With our army, people, leadership, and the support from our allies and friends, Syria is capable of surmounting any difficulties, no matter how severe they are," he said.

The minister's remarks were made as Syrian government forces faced assaults by rebel groups, led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, on multiple fronts in the northern, central, and eastern regions.

By Thursday, the rebel forces had seized major cities such as Aleppo and Hama after the army announced a withdrawal from Hama and redeployment of its forces outside the city.

Gunshots and the sound of shelling were heard in the capital Damascus on Thursday, particularly in the western Mazzeh neighborhood, Xinhua reported.

The escalation in fighting in Syria has displaced around 280,000 people in just over a week, the United Nations said on Friday, warning that numbers could swell to 1.5 million.

"The figure we have in front of us is 280,000 people since Nov 27," Samer AbdelJaber, head of emergency coordination at the UN's World Food Programme, told reporters in Geneva.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said local authorities reported tens of thousands of displaced families in Hama, some of whom fled to Homs. Hama is the destination city for people fleeing fighting in and around Idlib and Aleppo. There were reports of heavy fighting in Homs.

OCHA said it had worked in Hama with humanitarian partners before fighting broke out to provide relief, including health support and essential items, to those newly displaced.

Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said in a televised speech on Thursday that Hezbollah will support the Syrian government amid escalating offensives by rebel forces.

While Qassem did not clarify the form of support, he assured that Hezbollah would "do what it could".

On Friday morning, Israeli air-strikes hit two border crossings between Lebanon and Syria, Lebanese transport minister Ali Hamieh said.

The Syrian state news agency SANA said the Arida border crossing with Lebanon was out of service due to the attack.

The Israeli military said it had attacked weapons transfer hubs and infrastructure overnight on the Syrian side of the Lebanese border, saying these routes had been used by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah to smuggle weapons.

Russian bombing overnight also destroyed the Rustan bridge along the key M5 highway, the main route to Homs, to prevent rebels from using it, a Syrian army officer told Reuters.

"There were at least eight strikes on the bridge," he added. Government forces were bringing reinforcements to positions around the city, he said.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein was expected to meet his Syrian and Iranian counterparts on Friday to discuss the situation in Syria, the Iraqi state news agency said.

Xinhua - Agencies