Opposition rebels have seized Daraa, the fourth city to fall to insurgents in recent days, in a major blow for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Daraa was epicentre of the 2011 uprising and is a strategic border city adjacent to Jordan, but this is a symbolic victory.
Led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the rebel offensive started on 27 November and seized Aleppo, Hama and Deir Ezzor in rapid fashion. Homs, which connects Damascus with the pro-Assad coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus, where key oil refineries are located, are critical targets for Assad’s regime.
About 370,000 people have been displaced by the violence, and the U.N. says it could increase to 1.5 million. At least 200 insurgents have been killed in recent clashes, making for casualities fatalities in the conflict.
The reactions have been swift around the world. The US closely watching the situation and calling for a political settlement. Russia and Jordan have urged their citizens, along with Turkey a key backer of opposition groups, to leave Syria. It has also shut down its border crossing with Syria.
Regime allies such as the UAE, Egypt and Iraq are helping Assad appeal to regional allies like the Iran-backed Hezbollah for support in defending Homs while the Iran-backed Hezbollah has sent forces into the city to help Assad’s troops.
Assad’s position is weakening as Russia’s and Iran’s allies in Syria are in crises elsewhere, despite much of Syria having been reclaimed together with them. This vacuum is being exploited by Sunni militant groups which have upped their campaign against the regime. HTS leader Abu Mohammad al-Jawlani has vowed to topple Assad and set up a new regime.
The travel advisory came after India warned its citizens in Syria to leave immediately, citing growing violence.
