Syrian opposition factions took over the southern city of Daraa — which was the cradle of the country’s 2011 uprising — after they reached a deal with the army to secure its orderly withdrawal.
They say senior security and army officials serving in the city have been given safe passage to Damascus.
The scene in southern Syria on Friday seemed similar to what is happening in the north (Aleppo, Idlib and Hama), represented by the march of liberation and the expulsion of the regime and Iranian militias. Since early morning, the regime's fortresses began to collapse one after the other.
“Local factions have taken control of more areas in Daraa province, including Daraa city... They now control more than 90 percent of the province, as Syrian army successively pulled out,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
In Daraa province, only the Sanamayn area is still in government hands, Rami Abdel Rahman, who heads the British-based monitor with a network of sources in Syria, told AFP.
Earlier Friday, local factions seized the Nassib-Jaber border crossing with Jordan, the Observatory said, with Jordan closing its side of the crossing, Interior Minister Mazen al-Faraya said.
Daraa province was the cradle of the 2011 uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s rule, but it returned to government control in 2018 under a ceasefire deal brokered by al-Assad ally Russia. It was a anti-government bastion at the height of the civil war in the early 2010s.
Former opposition fighters there who accepted the 2018 deal were able to keep their light weapons.
Daraa province has been plagued by unrest in recent years, with frequent attacks, armed clashes and assassinations, some claimed by ISIS.
As soon as the deadline for the southern factions to the regime forces to defect ended, the announcement of the liberation of cities and towns began every hour, and the map became largely green from the west, including large cities such as "Nawa, Inkhil, Jasim, Tafas and Muzayrib" and strategic hills such as "Al-Jamou', Al-Jabiya, Al-Harra, Al-Hamr and Muqdad", passing through the central cities of "Dael, Khirbet Ghazala and Mahjah", reaching the east, including large cities such as "Busra Al-Sham, Al-Harak and Busra Al-Harir".
The "Southern Operations Room" announced control over the city of Daraa, after its members entered the security square, and the regime members and officials fled towards the capital, Damascus.
All detainees in the "Izraa Central Prison" were released, who were detained due to their opposition to the regime and their participation in protests against it.
The city of Izraa, which is under its control for the first time since the beginning of the revolution, is considered the link between Daraa and Damascus, and is located on the international road between Damascus and Amman.
The factions took control of the Al-Aghrar Battalion east of Busra al-Harir, securing the defection of more than 300 members. The 52nd Brigade in the city of al-Harak, the abandoned battalion east of the town of Ibtaa, the Al-Aghrar barracks, the Tablin checkpoint, and Tal al-Saman near the city of Tafas, west of Daraa, and all the towns with their detachments, barracks, and military checkpoints were also liberated.
In Quneitra, the opposition factions took control of the Ghadir al-Bustan checkpoint, the Abu Tina checkpoint, and the Dariya Company.
Comments About This Article
Please fill the fields below.