25 government soldiers killed, wounded in HTS attacks
ALEPPO, Syria (North Press) – A military source affiliated with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS, formerly al-Nusra Front) revealed on Tuesday that the group carried out an infiltration operation against Syrian government forces under the slogan ‘We will not reconcile’ – a response to recent normalization efforts between Ankara and Damascus.
Last week, Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, HTS’ leader, described the normalization as “a reward for the Syrian regime.”
The source stressed that the operation, which was carried out in Aleppo Governorate, was a practical rejection of that process. Al-Jolani himself stressed that his group has prepared itself for “hard coming days,” without further clarification.
During the operation, which resulted in clashes between the two parties, 25 government soldiers were killed and wounded in the town of Basratun, west of Aleppo, the same source claimed.
The HTS furthermore took control over a number of government positions. These clashes are the worst flare up of violence between the two parties in the past two years.
The Syrian government has yet to release any information about the attack.