Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Construction of $200M Trump Ballroom at the White House to Begin in September

18 hours ago

US Senate Committee Backs $1 Billion for Ukraine in Pentagon Spending Bill

19 hours ago

Trump Says Mexico Trade Deal Extended for 90 Days

21 hours ago

Wall Street Jumps as Microsoft Enters $4 Trillion Club After Results

22 hours ago

Fresno Unified Trustee Susan Wittrup Responds to $162,000 Payout

2 days ago

Neptune to Launch a Creator-First, Customizable Algorithm Social Platform to Rival TikTok

2 days ago

Kamala Harris Will Not Run for Governor of California in 2026

2 days ago

Trump Pushes for Release of Epstein, Maxwell Grand Jury Testimony

2 days ago
Syrian Troops Capture Key Town in Rebel-Held Idlib Province
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
January 29, 2020

Share

DAMASCUS, Syria — Syrian government forces captured one of the largest and most strategic rebel-held towns in the country’s northwest, the Syrian military and opposition activists said Wednesday, part of a Russian-backed military assault that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people fleeing to safer areas.
The town of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province, which had been in rebel hands since 2012, sits on the highway linking Damascus with Aleppo and is considered critical to President Bashar Assad’s forces. The town is now largely empty as a result of intense bombardment in recent weeks.
Its capture is the latest in a series of military triumphs for Assad. His forces have retaken control of most of the country from rebel fighters, largely because of blanket air support from Russia, which helped turn the tide in the nearly nine-year civil war.
Syria’s nearly nine-year conflict has left more than 400,000 people dead and displaced half of Syria’s population, including more than 5 million who are refugees, mostly in neighboring countries.
An exception to the Syrian government’s success in retaking territory from rebel groups has been Idlib province in the northwestern corner of the country near the Turkish border, which is held by opposition fighters and is dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants. The province is home to some 3 million people, many of them internally displaced.
Syrian government forces have been on the offensive for more than a month in Idlib province, the last rebel stronghold in the country. But in recent days, the government captured more than a dozen villages in the area as the insurgents’ defenses began to crumble.

Photo of Syrians fleeing
Syrians flee the advance of the government forces in the province of Idlib, Syria, towards the Turkish border, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2020. Syrian government forces captured one of the largest and most strategic rebel-held towns in the country’s northwest, the Syrian military and opposition activists said Wednesday, part of a Russian-backed military assault that has displaced hundreds of thousands of people fleeing to safer areas. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

The Push Appears to Have Angered Turkey

“Our armed forces continued operations in southern parts of Idlib with the aim of putting an end to crimes committed by terrorist groups,” said army spokesman Brig. Gen. Ali Mayhoub. He listed more than a dozen villages and towns captured, including Maaret al-Numan.

“Our armed forces continued operations in southern parts of Idlib with the aim of putting an end to crimes committed by terrorist groups.” army spokesman Brig. Gen. Ali Mayhoub
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said insurgents withdrew from the town late Tuesday. Syrian troops had left a road west of the town opened apparently to give a chance for insurgents to pull out and to avoid street battles inside the town.
Syrian state news agency SANA reported that a Syrian reporter working for Russia Today was wounded Wednesday near Maaret al-Numan, saying the woman and her team were subjected to fire by insurgents. SANA said the reporter was in stable condition without giving details about her injury.
But the push appears to have angered Turkey, which backs the opposition and has for years coordinated with Russia, a main backer of Assad, during the conflict. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed frustration with Moscow over its failure to halt Syrian government attacks in Idlib.
Erdogan said Russia is not loyal to agreements reached with Turkey over the situation in Idlib, including a cease-fire that collapsed earlier this month. He said he is in contact with the Russians to tell them to stop the bombing “in Idlib or our patience will run out.”

Government Forces Began an Offensive on the Western Suburbs of Aleppo

Amid intense airstrikes and heavy bombardment, trucks loaded with displaced people from areas surrounding Maaret al-Numan, including Jabal al-Zawiya, headed toward areas near the Turkish border, already bursting with internally displaced people.
“Only God knows where our destination will be, where we will find a house. We do not know anything, maybe we will sleep in the car,” said one woman who was among those fleeing with her family Tuesday. She declined to give her name, fearing for her safety.
The Syrian Response Coordination Group, a relief group active in northwestern Syria, reported that until the end of December more than 216,000 people fled their homes in Idlib. In a new release, the group said 167,000 fled since the beginning of January, bringing the total number to more than 383,000 people.
Farther north, government forces began an offensive on the western suburbs of Aleppo in an attempt to push insurgents away from Syria’s largest city. Around noon Wednesday, Syrian troops captured a major suburb west of Aleppo, according to state media.
Maaret al-Numan sits on the highway linking Damascus with Aleppo, once Syria’s main commercial hub. With the town’s fall, government forces are now closer to retaking the critical north-south highway.
In August, Syrian troops captured another town along the highway, Khan Sheikhoun. Now that Syrian troops are in control of Maaret al-Numan, their next target is likely to be Saraqeb, which would become the last major town on the M5 highway that remains outside government control.
[activecampaign form=29]

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Trump Sets 10% to 41% ‘Reciprocal’ Tariffs on Dozens of Countries’ Exports

DON'T MISS

Fresno Fire Displaces Family of Three, Pets Rescued

DON'T MISS

Measure C Advisory Group Still Squabbling but Agrees on Mission Statement

DON'T MISS

Adopt Eevee and She’ll Bring Sunshine Into Your Life

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Authorities Arrest Suspect, Recover Firearms and Drugs in Fowler

DON'T MISS

Countries With No Trade Deal Will Hear From US by Midnight, White House Says

DON'T MISS

Trump’s Envoy Meets Netanyahu for Gaza Aid, Ceasefire Push

DON'T MISS

Fresno’s $100M Warehouse Project Means Big Things for City: Dyer

DON'T MISS

Construction of $200M Trump Ballroom at the White House to Begin in September

DON'T MISS

Tulare County Fire Responds to Three-Alarm Fire at Commercial Building Near Tipton

UP NEXT

Trump’s Envoy Meets Netanyahu for Gaza Aid, Ceasefire Push

UP NEXT

Yosemite’s Largest Campground Reopens Friday After $26.2 Million Renovation

UP NEXT

US Senate Committee Backs $1 Billion for Ukraine in Pentagon Spending Bill

UP NEXT

Trump Says Mexico Trade Deal Extended for 90 Days

UP NEXT

Canada Says It Intends to Recognize a Palestinian State in September

UP NEXT

Trump Says US and Pakistan Have Concluded a Trade Deal

UP NEXT

How Netanyahu Keeps Playing Trump for a Fool in Gaza

UP NEXT

Trump Signs Order Implementing Additional 40% Tariff on Brazil, White House Says

UP NEXT

Trump Says US to Hit India With 25% Tariff Starting Friday

UP NEXT

Israeli Minister Hints at Annexing Parts of Gaza

Adopt Eevee and She’ll Bring Sunshine Into Your Life

15 hours ago

Fresno County Authorities Arrest Suspect, Recover Firearms and Drugs in Fowler

16 hours ago

Countries With No Trade Deal Will Hear From US by Midnight, White House Says

16 hours ago

Trump’s Envoy Meets Netanyahu for Gaza Aid, Ceasefire Push

17 hours ago

Fresno’s $100M Warehouse Project Means Big Things for City: Dyer

17 hours ago

Construction of $200M Trump Ballroom at the White House to Begin in September

18 hours ago

Tulare County Fire Responds to Three-Alarm Fire at Commercial Building Near Tipton

18 hours ago

If Texas Gerrymanders Its House Districts, Costa Says California Must Follow Suit

18 hours ago

Yosemite’s Largest Campground Reopens Friday After $26.2 Million Renovation

19 hours ago

Two Men Shot During Fight at Tulare Apartment Complex

19 hours ago

Trump Sets 10% to 41% ‘Reciprocal’ Tariffs on Dozens of Countries’ Exports

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday imposing reciprocal tariffs ranging from 10% to 41% on U.S. imports from dozens...

13 hours ago

President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 8, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
13 hours ago

Trump Sets 10% to 41% ‘Reciprocal’ Tariffs on Dozens of Countries’ Exports

A fire sparked by oily rags displaced a Fresno family and damaged their home Thursday, July 31, 2025, but firefighters rescued three dogs, a chameleon, and a turtle with no injuries reported. (Fresno FD)
15 hours ago

Fresno Fire Displaces Family of Three, Pets Rescued

Measure C MeasureC Highway 41 HWY41 Transportation tax (GV Wire Composite/Paul Marshall)
15 hours ago

Measure C Advisory Group Still Squabbling but Agrees on Mission Statement

Eevee Is GV Wire's Adoptable Cat of the Week, July 31, 2025
15 hours ago

Adopt Eevee and She’ll Bring Sunshine Into Your Life

Fresno County authorities helped Fowler police arrest a suspect on Thursday, July 31, 2025, and seize stolen firearms, drugs, ammunition, and cash following a grand theft investigation. (Fowler PD)
16 hours ago

Fresno County Authorities Arrest Suspect, Recover Firearms and Drugs in Fowler

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 31, 2025. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)
16 hours ago

Countries With No Trade Deal Will Hear From US by Midnight, White House Says

Palestinians carry aid supplies that entered Gaza through Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, July 30, 2025. (Reuters File)
17 hours ago

Trump’s Envoy Meets Netanyahu for Gaza Aid, Ceasefire Push

17 hours ago

Fresno’s $100M Warehouse Project Means Big Things for City: Dyer

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend