Syrian army pulls back as rebels seize Hama city

The Syrian army confirmed on Thursday that opposition forces had entered Hama city following intense clashes, leading to the redeployment of its units outside the strategic city.

The army said in a statement on Thursday that it was redeploying its forces “to preserve civilian lives and prevent urban combat”, reversing an earlier claim that denied rebel fighters had entered the city, News.Az reports, citing Al Jazeera.

Opposition commander Hassan Abdul Ghany posted on social media earlier on Thursday that his fighters had begun entering Hama, which they had been laying siege to since Tuesday amid heavy fighting overnight with the Syrian army, which was backed by intense Russian air attacks.

Opposition fighters pushed south from their enclave in northwest Syria, seizing Aleppo last week before reaching a strategic hill just north of Hama on Tuesday and advancing towards the city’s east and west flanks.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said late on Wednesday that opposition fighters had “surrounded Hama city from three sides”.

“Violent clashes took place during the night between the rebels and the regime forces”, particularly in the Jabal Zayn al-Abidin area, just north of Hama, the United Kingdom-based monitor said.

The head of the Syrian Observatory, Rami Abdurrahman, said government forces had been engaged in “fierce resistance and trying to stop the rebels’ advance”.

Hama lies more than a third of the way from Aleppo to Damascus and its capture would open the road to a rebel advance on Homs, the main central city that functions as a crossroads connecting Syria’s most populous regions.

It is also critical to the control of two major towns with sizeable minority religious communities; Muhrada, which is home to many Christians, and Salamiya, where there are many Ismaili Muslims.

Hama province also borders the coastal region of Latakia, a main base of popular support for al-Assad.

News.Az