Aleppo: Syrian Army Enters Another Rebel-Held District

On Tuesday morning, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), Al-Ba’ath Brigades (Liwaa Al-Ba’ath), and the National Defense Forces (NDF) began the 2nd phase of the Al-‘Oweeja and Baya’adeen offensive in northeast Aleppo following their success in the village of Bureijj yesterday. The Al-Oweeja and Baya’adeen Districts are strategically located in the vicinity of the rebel-held Hanano District; this area in east Aleppo is crucial to the security of the provincial capital.

The NDF and SAA surprised the Islamic Front (Jabhat Al-Islamiyya) fighters with a barrage of artillery shells at 5 A.M. on Tuesday morning in the Baya’adeen District – they would later infiltrate Islamic Front defenses and take-up a position in southern part of the district.

At the village of Al-Bureijj, the SAA and NDF engaged a large group of Islamic Front fighters north of Al-Manasheer, killing a dozen of the armed militants before advancing further in the area. Among the dead Islamic Front fighters was the field commander of a contingent loyal to Liwaa ‘Ahrar Al-Sham (Liberation of the Levant Brigades), Anas Mustafa (AKA “Abu ‘Islam”) – he, along with his aide were discovered by the SAA following the battle.