The battle of the last attempt witnesses fierce fighting and the first hours of the attack results in advancing the attacking factions and kill about 30 members and fighters
Hysterical bombing target Idlib and Hama countryside and Russia enters the battle from the air
The north-eastern countryside of Hama and the southern countryside of Idlib, are witnessing violent explosions since the dawn of the 19th of September 2017, as a result of the intensive aerial and ground shelling on areas in the villages, towns and cities in the countryside of Hama and Idlib, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights observed since the dawn, carrying out tens of raids by the warplanes, which targeted Khan Shaykhun, Al-Hbit, Tarmala, Jabala, Ma’ar Zita, Kafr Nubl, Al-Hamdiyya, Al-Taman’aa, Murak, Arafa, Qasr Ibn Wirdaan, Douma, Ribda, Al-Hazm, Atshan, Tel Bizam and Sukayk, which caused wounded in Al-Hbit town and information about more wounded in the other areas, some of them are in serious cases, and several strikes targeted a medical point and a civil defense center in Khan Shaykhun and the vicinity of Kafr Nubl hospital, and areas in the villages and the towns of Sfuhen, Tarmlla and Al-Karkat and other areas in Hama and Idlib countryside, witnessed intensive artillery and rocket shelling which caused destruction and damages to the property of the citizens, while the factions and the Islamic Party of Turkestan, are continuing to target the positions of the regime forces in the villages and areas of Al-Hakorah, Ma’an, Khafsin, Blail, Al-Tulaysiyah, Al-Zughbah, Al-Qahirah, Al-Talah Al-Sawdaa, Al-Fan Wastani and Al-Fan Qibli in the north-eastern countryside of Hama and the south-eastern countryside of Idlib.
These intensive raids and the hysterical shelling are accompanied by flying Russian warplanes over Idlib and Hama and the clash areas, amid confirmed information obtained by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights about starting the Russian warplanes to participate in the air strikes, causing violent explosions heard in large areas in the countryside of Hama and Idlib, while the level of the continuous clashes since the dawn of Wednesday escalated, in which fierce clashes are taking place between the regime forces and militiamen loyal to them on one hand, and the fighters of Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham, Jaysh al-Izza, the Islamic Party of Turkestan and the rebel and Islamic factions on the other in areas of Ma’an, Khafsin, and Al-Tulaysiyah and other nearby areas in the north-eastern countryside of Hama, following starting a violent attack by the factions on the area, and crossed sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that the factions managed to achieve advancement in the area, and take the control of the two villages, in addition to advancing in checkpoints and other points of the regime forces on the contact areas in the clash area, and reached the vicinity and the outskirts of Ma’an, while an explosion shook the area of clash and confirmed information that it was caused by exploding a booby trapped car targeted positions of the regime forces, while the violent clashes coincide with exchange of intensive targeting, resulted in destroying and breaking down vehicles of the both parties, and the air strikes, shelling and clashes caused casualties in the ranks of the both parties, in which 12 fighters at least of the factions, Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham and the Turkistan were killed, as well as the death of 19 members at least of the regime forces and militiamen loyal to them, and the injury of tens in the ranks of the both parties.
This battle of the last attempt, comes in an effort by the factions to achieve advancement in the area and take the control of the villages which close the distance between them and the strategic mountain of Zayn Al-Abidin and Hama city, while this battle comes after preparations lasted for days in which Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham intended to tell the citizens in the villages in the far southern countryside of Idlib and the north-eastern countryside of Hama, to leave their houses to avoid the intensive shelling which will be carried out on the area if the operation starts, thus, the area witnessed a displacement movement during the past days to villages far from the areas of this military operation, while Hama province witnessed months ago violent clashes between the regime forces and militiamen loyal to them of Syrian and non-Syrian nationalities, and the rebel and Islamic factions and Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham, in which they managed to take the control of a large number of villages and towns, under a cover of intensive shelling, then the regime forces came and retook the control on the whole areas they lost.
A video by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights observes the targeting of warplanes to a hospital in Khan Shaykhun in the southern countryside of Idlib
https://www.facebook.com/syriahro/videos/10156000457043115/