The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

The regime forces continue attacking the northeastern countryside of Hama and manage to advance in a new village

Hama province – The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights:: the SOHR learned that the violent clashes are still ongoing between Hayaat Tahrir Al-Sham and their allied factions against the regime forces and their allied militiamen in areas in the northeastern countryside of Hama, where the SOHR monitored that the regime forces managed to advance since their violent attack yesterday in this countryside, and they managed to advance in a village, expanding their areas of control in the northeastern countryside of Hama to 26 villages and towns. They are ((Umm Sahrij, Umm Mayyal, Al-Shakozia, Al-Rahjan, Al-Shahatiya, Al-Mastriha, Jub Abyad, Rasm Abu Mayyal, Rasm Al-Sewan, Rasm Al-Sawy, Abu Al-Ghar, Hasnawy, Douma, Marijab Al-Jamalan, Baghidid, Rasm Al-Ahmar, Rasm Al-Tina, Abu Lafa, Al-Maushayrifa, Jawiad, Hasrat, Kherbat Al-Rahjan, Al-Khafia, Sham Al-Hawa, Al-Rehraha, and Sarha)). The advancement coincided with clashes and an exchange of shelling in the clash area, and there is no information about human losses.

The SOHR published yesterday that it learned that the regime forces managed to achieve strategic advancement and control Al-Rahjan town, the hometown of the Syrian regime’s former Minister of Defense, Fahd Jassem Al-Farrij, who was sacked from his office in the beginning of 2018, and the control came after the violent attack, through which the regime forces managed to control this town, after Hayaat Tahrir Al-Sham withdrew from the town as a result of heavy shelling, and there is information about human losses in the ranks of both parties. It noteworthy that Al-Rahjan town came out of the regime’s control in the mid of July 2014, where it was controlled by Al-Nusra Front (al-Qaeda organization in the Levant) at that time, and was under the control of it until it lost it today the 9th of January 2018. Al-Rahjan is the hometown of the former Minister of Defense Fahd Al-Farij who was dismissed from office by a decree issued by President of the regime Bashar Al-Assad on the 1stof January 2018, where he assigned Gen. Ali Ayoub, as the new Minister of Defense of the regime. The former Defense Minister Fahd Al-Farij, who comes from the northeast of Hama, got dismissed from office after the regime forces failed many times to restore the hometown of the Minister of Defense.