In a swift and deadly retaliatory strike, the National Liberation Front (NLF) launched an assault against Assad regime forces in the northern Latakia countryside, killing and injuring 12 soldiers. The attack, carried out by the Coastal Division, one of the NLF’s key factions, targeted regime positions on the Kilis axis in Jabal al-Turkman on Tuesday evening.
According to a military source, the operation involved an “immersion operation,” where fighters infiltrated deep into regime territory. The assault not only resulted in significant casualties among Assad’s forces but also led to the destruction of several bunkers before the Coastal Division fighters successfully withdrew to their positions.
The operation was a direct response to the recent escalation of Assad aggression against civilians in northwestern Syria, particularly in the Idlib and Aleppo provinces. The Assad regime and its allies, Russia and Iran, have intensified their attacks on these regions, employing artillery shelling, missile strikes, and weaponized drones that have predominantly targeted civilian infrastructure and homes.
Following the Coastal Division’s attack, regime forces retaliated by shelling residential neighborhoods in the city of Jisr al-Shughur, west of Idlib, and the town of Tuffahiyah in northern Latakia. The shelling resulted in several civilian injuries, including a child and a woman, as reported by the Syrian Civil Defense, also known as the White Helmets.
This operation in Latakia came just hours after another significant attack by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) on the Kabashin axis in the western Aleppo countryside. Fighters from the Saad bin Abi Waqqas Brigade, part of HTS, infiltrated regime forces’ positions, capturing two soldiers and seizing control of a strategic point used to monitor nearby roads.
HTS confirmed that their operation was also a direct response to the regime’s recent escalations, which have included widespread attacks on villages near the frontlines, causing numerous civilian casualties and threatening further displacement.
The conflict in northwestern Syria has seen a marked increase in violence this year. The Response Coordinators Team has documented 2,387 ceasefire violations by regime forces and their allied militias from the beginning of 2024 until August. These violations have resulted in the deaths of 34 civilians, including 10 children, and injuries to 151 others. As the situation deteriorates, there is growing fear among civilians living near the contact lines. Many families are preparing to flee if the regime’s military campaign continues to escalate.
In retaliation for the regime’s shelling of civilian areas, opposition factions, including the Coastal Division and HTS, have intensified their operations against Assad’s forces in Latakia and surrounding areas.
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