(Zaman Al Wasl)- Free Syrian Army forces pounded strategic military airport of Hama city with more than 40 Grad rockets as the regime regained strategic town of Soran, rebel news feeds said Sunday.
Hama military airport is not operating due to heavy surface-to-surface rockets attack, source told Zaman al-Wasl.
Videos downloaded on social media showed plumes of smoke rising from a distance.
Jaish al-Naser, key moderate rebel group operating in northern Hama countryside, adopted the attack, that pushed regime and Russia to deport advanced helicopters to Shayrat airfield in central Homs province.
Rebel Twitter accounts said Grad strikes were in response to regime attacks on liberated civilian areas in Hama countryside.
On Saturday, FSA factions recaptured ground lost to favor of regime forces this week in Hama amid heavy aerial bombing by regime air force, field sources said.
At least 10 regime troops killed in the rebels counterattack south of Helfaya town. Two tanks and armored vehicles were also destroyed.
Last September, rebels were supplied with surface-to-surface Grad rockets in response to the Russian-backed offensive in Aleppo, according to Fares al-Bayoush, rebel commander of the Free Syrian Army.
Rockets for the Grad BM-21 multilaunch systems with ranges of 22km and 40km have recently been supplied in "excellent quantities," Reuters reported, citing Colonel al-Bayoush. The colonel did not specify exactly how many rockets had been received.
ARMY REGAINS SORAN
The army regained the strategic town of Soran near the city of Hama on Sunday with an assault backed by heavy Russian air strikes, rebels and residents said.
Most of the rebels had retreated from the town after troops stormed it following dozens of strikes by jets believed to be Russian since dawn, including so-called parachute bombs that also targeted other towns in the area, including Latamneh and Kafr Zeita.
"There was hysterical bombing that targeted the town and the whole area and rebels fought fierce battles until they were forced to pull out," said one rebel, a member of the Jaish al Izza group, which has a strong presence in Hama province who requested anonymity.
The army was aided by Iranian-backed Shi'ite militias who had supported the over-stretched government forces, rebels say.
The stronghold of Soran is the army's northern gateway to the city of Hama, the provincial capital. It had been captured by the army last year, then lost in the latest rebel offensive.
The army's advance into Soran rolls back most of the territorial gains made by rebels, who include jihadist groups, after a major offensive last month in northern Hama province in the center of the populated west of the country.
The rebels in retaliation had fired scores of rockets on the nearby Hama military airport.
The rebels still hold the strategic town of Morek, north of Hama city. It lies on a major north-south highway crucial to control of western Syria. (With Reuters)
Hama military airport is not operating due to heavy surface-to-surface rockets attack, source told Zaman al-Wasl.
Videos downloaded on social media showed plumes of smoke rising from a distance.
Jaish al-Naser, key moderate rebel group operating in northern Hama countryside, adopted the attack, that pushed regime and Russia to deport advanced helicopters to Shayrat airfield in central Homs province.
Rebel Twitter accounts said Grad strikes were in response to regime attacks on liberated civilian areas in Hama countryside.
On Saturday, FSA factions recaptured ground lost to favor of regime forces this week in Hama amid heavy aerial bombing by regime air force, field sources said.
At least 10 regime troops killed in the rebels counterattack south of Helfaya town. Two tanks and armored vehicles were also destroyed.
Last September, rebels were supplied with surface-to-surface Grad rockets in response to the Russian-backed offensive in Aleppo, according to Fares al-Bayoush, rebel commander of the Free Syrian Army.
Rockets for the Grad BM-21 multilaunch systems with ranges of 22km and 40km have recently been supplied in "excellent quantities," Reuters reported, citing Colonel al-Bayoush. The colonel did not specify exactly how many rockets had been received.
ARMY REGAINS SORAN
The army regained the strategic town of Soran near the city of Hama on Sunday with an assault backed by heavy Russian air strikes, rebels and residents said.
Most of the rebels had retreated from the town after troops stormed it following dozens of strikes by jets believed to be Russian since dawn, including so-called parachute bombs that also targeted other towns in the area, including Latamneh and Kafr Zeita.
"There was hysterical bombing that targeted the town and the whole area and rebels fought fierce battles until they were forced to pull out," said one rebel, a member of the Jaish al Izza group, which has a strong presence in Hama province who requested anonymity.
The army was aided by Iranian-backed Shi'ite militias who had supported the over-stretched government forces, rebels say.
The stronghold of Soran is the army's northern gateway to the city of Hama, the provincial capital. It had been captured by the army last year, then lost in the latest rebel offensive.
The army's advance into Soran rolls back most of the territorial gains made by rebels, who include jihadist groups, after a major offensive last month in northern Hama province in the center of the populated west of the country.
The rebels in retaliation had fired scores of rockets on the nearby Hama military airport.
The rebels still hold the strategic town of Morek, north of Hama city. It lies on a major north-south highway crucial to control of western Syria. (With Reuters)
Comments About This Article
Please fill the fields below.