Rebels opposed to President Bashar Assad called Friday for help from the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State, saying the Syrian military is close to encircling the city of Aleppo and cutting off rebel supply routes to Turkey. In a statement, the Syrian Opposition Coalition, once hailed by the United States as the only legitimate representative of the Syrian people, called for U.S. assistance, warning of dire results if Assad’s forces are able to seize the town of Handarat, just north of the Aleppo city limits. That would cut the Castello road, which is the only route in and out of the rebel-held eastern portion of Aleppo, essentially trapping the rebel forces. Whether the U.S. would even consider assisting the rebels, however, is unclear. A senior military official in the United States said the U.S. military had received similar requests in the past but that he did not know if this specific one had been received. U.S. officials have said that the battle against the Islamic State and not the fight to topple Assad is their current priority. Rebel activists say the anti-Assad forces are desperately summoning reinforcements to Handarat. “This is the most important battle in Syria now, because if the regime succeeds he will be able to isolate Aleppo and take the whole north of Syria,” said Muhammad Badr Eddin, an activist based in Mare, a town about 20 miles north of Aleppo. The rebel desperation was heightened by the government’s capture Thursday of the strategic town of Morak, on the highway that links Aleppo with Damascus. The town, in the northern part of Hama province, had been besieged by government forces for 10 months. Both rebels and the state-owned Syrian Arab News Agency reported that government forces had captured the town. Rebel strategists said the loss of Morak came after Syrian aircraft dropped more than 40 so-called “barrel bombs” on the town. Syrian infantry then captured a key hilltop and advanced into the city center. With the town now in government hands, they said, pro-Assad forces are in a position to break the rebel siege of Wadi al Dief, the largest government military base in northern Syria. mcclatchydc/2014/10/24/244671_syrias-other-war-rebels-plead.html?rh=1#storylink=cpy
Posted on: Mon, 27 Oct 2014 14:28:53 +0000
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