Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham continues its advancement and recover more of the areas it lost for ISIS

Hama Province – The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: several shells fired by the regime forces fell after the midnight of Wednesday – Thursday, on places in Al-Lataminah town in the northern countryside of Hama, and the regime forces shelled areas in the western countryside in Salamiyah city east of Hama after the midnight, and no information about casualties was reported yet, and in the same context, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the violent clashes renewed in areas in the north-eastern countryside of Hama, after calmness prevailed yesterday after the midnight, in which Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham resumed its attack on the positions of ISIS in the area, in an attempt by Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham to take the control of the areas it lost for the organization days ago, and Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham managed to achieve wide advancement in Abu Kahf and Al-Sukarry villages, where it took the control of the most of Abu Kahf villages, and parts of Al-Sukarry village, under an intensive artillery cover, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights yesterday, that the clashes are still continuing between Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham against the members of the “Islamic State” organization, in areas in the north-eastern countryside of Hama, in which the clashes concentrated in 4 villages and their vicinities, and witnessed exchange of intensive shelling between the both parties, accompanied the violent fighting between the both parties, in which the organization managed to advance in two villages in the north-eastern countryside of Hama, before Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham returned to carry out violent attack and retook the control of these two villages and other two villages used to be controlled by the organization, and confirmed information about the death of more members of the ranks of the both parties in the same clashes.

And the “Islamic State” organization is seeking to extend the scope of its control in the area, and to hold its presence in Hama province, after its presence as a controlling organization in the whole of Hama province was finished, after the regime forces recovered the whole of the eastern countryside of Salamiyah, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored a great displacement movement of hundreds of citizens from their villages in the clash areas between the organization and Tahrir Al-Sham, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the citizens escaped to areas far from the clash areas, in which some villages are still controlled by the organization after Tahrir Al-Sham recovered 6 villages and residential communities at least on the first day of the clashes, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 10th of October 2017, that this clash between the both parties is considered the first direct clash between the both parties since months, and it came after ISIS crossed from Wadi Al-Azeeb area to Al-Rahjan area and the north-eastern countryside of Hama, where the sources confirmed that the “Islamic State” Organization has reneged the agreement between it and between Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham earlier, and that their families of children, women, young men and non-fighter men will be entered to the areas controlled by the factions, and that members of organization are prevented from entering, and any member or fighter of the organization who may enter will be either captured or killed.

While tens of people crossed the regime-held area and the mined area, towards the areas controlled by Hayaat Tahrir al-Sham, and within the numbers of civilian group who crossed, there are ISIS members, who refused to obey the orders of Hayaat Tahrir al-Sham to turn themselves in as usual during the transfer process of groups from Wadi al-Azeeb area in the eastern countryside of Salmiyah to the areas controlled by Hayaat Tahrir al-Sham

The Syrian Observatory learned from several reliable sources that the members of ISIS are used to turn themselves in each time to the headquarters of Tahrir al-Sham but this time, violent clashes took place between the two parties in the areas of al-Rahjan and Abu Lafa, fearing the same fate of those ISIS members who got arrested by Tahrir al-Sham and went missing. The sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that the members of Tahrir al-Sham , who originally come from al-Shuaytat tribe, arrested during the past 2 weeks about 70 members of the organization fleeing the eastern countryside of Hama, which was recently controlled by the regime forces, including about 20 injured ISIS members and some of them need immediate treatment in hospitals and medical centers, but the members of al-Shuyatat arrested them and took them to unknown destinations, where tensions is prevailing among the families of those ISIS members, amid information about executions of them, while sources in Hayaat Tahrir al-Sham said that the captured ISIS members are being subjected to “legitimate session” and will later be released, while they don’t announce their whereabouts.