Iraqi fighters arrive to aid Syria against rebels

(CLO) Hundreds of Iraqi fighters arrived in Syria on Monday to help the country's government army fight against rebels who have occupied the city of Aleppo since last week.

Iraqi militias, as well as Hezbollah, Iran and Russian air support, played a key role in helping President Bashar al-Assad's regime suppress rebels in Syria in 2011.

However, the current situation is much more difficult and complicated, as Russia is focusing on the war in Ukraine, Iran is also focusing on protecting its country after the clashes with Israel, and Hezbollah has been greatly weakened after the war with Israel.

Rebel fighters and infantry fighting vehicles in the town of Tel Rifaat, Syria on December 2, 2024. Photo: Reuters

The head of Syria's main opposition group abroad, Hadi al-Bahra, told Reuters that rebels were able to take the city so quickly because Hezbollah and Iran-aligned groups were distracted by the conflict with Israel.

Preparations for an attack on Aleppo have been underway since last year, but were delayed due to the war in Gaza, he said.

Syria’s civil war has been on ice since 2020, with Mr Assad’s forces controlling most of the country and all major cities. Rebels still hold a pocket of land in the northwest, Turkish-backed forces hold a strip of land along the northern border and US-backed Kurdish forces control a patch of land in the northeast.

At least 300 fighters, mainly from Iraq's Badr and Nujabaa groups, crossed the Syrian border on Sunday night by land, two Iraqi security sources said, adding that they were there to protect a Shi'ite shrine.

A senior Syrian military source said the fighters had crossed the border in small groups to avoid air strikes. “These are new reinforcements sent to support our comrades on the northern frontline,” the source said.

Hezbollah has been forced to withdraw most of its forces from Syria to Lebanon to fight Israel since mid-October as fighting with Israel escalated. Arab countries and the US see Hezbollah's weakness as an opportunity to separate the Assad regime from its alliance with Iran.

The Kremlin said Russia continued to support Mr Assad and was analysing the situation on the ground. The Syrian government said Syrian and Russian air forces were still pounding rebel-held positions in the eastern countryside of Aleppo.

Meanwhile, Türkiye and Iran also discussed the fighting in Syria on Monday. Türkiye's state-run Anadolu news agency said the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army had captured the town of Tel Rifaat from the Kurdish YPG militia and was advancing into areas outside the district.

Hoang Anh (according to Reuters, AJ, CNN)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/cac-chien-binh-iraq-den-ho-tro-syria-chong-lai-quan-noi-day-post323902.html