Syrian Forces Break Siege of Aleppo Military Airbase, Seek to Capture ISIL Hotbed
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Syria’s military forces broke the siege of the Kowaires military airbase on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Aleppo which was besieged by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorists since 2013.
"Army and the armed forces eliminated large numbers of ISIL terrorists and made contact with the forces defending Kweires Airport in Aleppo's eastern countryside," the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said on Tuesday.
SANA also reported that government forces recaptured several villages in the eastern suburbs of Aleppo.
The Syrian army troops, backed by the voluntary forces, had launched a major offensive to reach the airbase on October 16.
A Syrian soldier involved in the operation to recapture the Kowaires airbase told Tasnim that the next operation will focus on the liberation of Um Arkila village in the countryside of Aleppo, which is known as the hotbed of the ISIL terrorists.
The Syrian forces are now on the brink of retaking control of a main road linking Aleppo to Hama.
Syria has been entangled in civil war since March 2011. The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) Takfiri terrorist group controls parts of the Arab country, mostly in the east.
Meanwhile, Russia’s aerial support for the Syrian forces has given fresh impetus to the fight against the foreign-backed terrorists.
Since late September, Russia has been carrying out bombings against the ISIL terrorists in Syria, after Russia's parliament granted President Putin authorization to deploy the country's air force abroad.
In the past four and half years, more than 250,000 people have died in Syria -overwhelmingly civilians- and around 4 million Syrian people are now refugees in other countries. Around 8 million others have been displaced internally.
