Syria Rebels Capture Hama, Free Prisoners

Syrian insurgents entered the central city of Hama on Thursday, after days of intense fighting with government forces, continuing their week-long offensive that has seen them take control of large parts of Syria. The Syrian army confirmed its withdrawal from Hama, citing a breakthrough by insurgents in the city’s defenses, marking another significant setback for President Bashar al-Assad. The army stated that it repositioned its forces outside Hama to safeguard civilians.

The insurgents are now likely to focus on Homs, Syria’s third-largest city, located about 40 kilometers south of Hama. Homs serves as a critical gateway to the capital, Damascus, which is Assad’s power base, and the coastal region that supports his government.

Abu Mohammed al-Golani, leader of the most powerful insurgent group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), declared in a video message that the capture of Hama was an act of “mercy and compassion,” rather than vengeance. HTS, which has ties to al-Qaeda and is designated a terrorist organization by the U.N. and several countries, including the U.S., has played a leading role in the offensive. Al-Golani had also toured Aleppo the previous day, celebrating the insurgent group’s recent victories.

The insurgents’ push into Hama followed three days of fierce clashes with government troops on the city’s outskirts. The Syrian army later confirmed that several soldiers had died while resisting the insurgents, who reportedly used suicide attacks to breach the city’s defenses.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition group, insurgent forces now control key locations in Hama, including the police command headquarters, the main air base, and the central prison, from which hundreds of detainees were released.

The fall of Hama is seen as a critical blow to Assad’s regime. Hama had remained under full government control throughout the conflict that began in 2011 after a popular uprising. Rami Abdurrahman, head of the Observatory, stated that losing Hama could signal the beginning of the regime’s collapse.

The offensive is led by HTS and the Syrian National Army, a coalition of Turkish-backed militias. Their unexpected capture of Aleppo, Syria’s largest city and a key economic hub, has reignited the conflict, which had been largely stalled in recent years. Aleppo had been retaken by Assad in 2016 with the help of Russian air support after opposition forces had briefly seized it.

The intensifying conflict comes as Assad’s primary backers, Russia and Iran, are distracted by other ongoing conflicts. The renewed fighting, which started on November 27, has displaced tens of thousands of people.

The insurgents claimed on Thursday via a Telegram channel that they had entered Hama and were advancing toward the city center. Local commanders reported fierce clashes with government forces in several neighborhoods. Hama is a strategic city that connects central Syria with the north, east, and west, and lies 200 kilometers from Damascus. The city is also located near Latakia, a coastal province that is a stronghold of support for Assad.

Hama is also infamous for the 1982 massacre, when forces under Assad’s father, Hafez al-Assad, killed thousands to suppress a Muslim Brotherhood uprising.