(Zaman Al Wasl)- Tahrir al-Sham militants have blocked main crossings link between Aleppo and Idlib provinces, such a move reflects the mounting power of the former al-Qaeda group.
Abdul Razaq Shelo, resident in Atareb town, told Zaman al-Wasl that Tahrir al-Sham shut down the crossing of al-Ghazawiya that links the western Aleppo with rebel-held areas and Atema crossing that links between Idlib and Deir al-Ballout area in the northern countryside of Aleppo.
A ceasefire deal reached on Saturday put an end to five-day battle between the militant-led alliance and the National Liberation Front.
The fighting has killed more than 100 fighters, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
"HTS was able to take control of areas previously held by Nour al-din al-Zinki in the west of the Aleppo countryside," the Britain-based activist group said.
Tahrir al-Sham seized more than 20 villages from rival rebels in the northern province of Aleppo.
Those areas lie in the northeast of Syria's last major rebel bastion, which includes a large part of Idlib province as well as adjacent parts of Aleppo and Hama provinces.
Tahrir al-Sham on Sunday has taken full control of the town of Atareb north of Aleppo after it agreed with rebels to dissolve two local factions, activists told Zaman al-Wasl.
Residents told Zaman al-Wasl that 120 fighters left Atareb to Afrin city near the Turkish border.
Observers say formerly known as Nusra Front takes the attack policy as the only way to defend its existence as regional powers agree to uproot militant groups from northern Syria.
The besieged Atareb came under heavy bombardment by Tahrir al-Sham on Saturday, in a scene recalled the brutal bombing of the Assad army on civil areas, activists said.
Tahrir al-Sham also seeks to arrest 250 people, including 8 women, from Atarteb.
The wanted women had incited people against the radical group and its mounting abuses, document obtained by Zaman al-Wasl showed.
The clashes broke out after HTS, which is led by Syria's former Al-Qaeda affiliate, on Monday accused Nour al-din al-Zinki, key unit in National Front, of killing five of its fighters.
Since September, a buffer zone deal between rebel backer Turkey and regime ally Russia has shielded the Idlib region from a massive regime offensive.
Over the past two years, HTS has regularly fought a rival alliance of rebels called the National Liberation Front, which includes Nour al-din al-Zinki, for territory in and around Idlib province.
Since the revolution erupted in 2011, more than 560,000 people have been killed, and more than 6 million people have been displaced.
Zaman Al Wasl
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