On Saturday evening, ISIS recaptured the predominately Kurdish town of Qabasin after an ambush prompted Turkish-backed Syrian rebels to withdraw from the town and also abandon their positions in the recently captured village of Agil (Aji).
22 Free Syrian Army (FSA) militants were killed during the surprise ISIS attack, adding insult to injury after ISIS forces destroyed two Turkish tanks yesterday.
Qabasin has changed hands between the warring parties four times in the past four days, devastating much of the town and leaving many civilians caught in permanent crossfire.
Although falling back on the eastern axis of al-Bab city, the FSA did gain ground on the western flank of the city, advancing through sparsely populated countryside and putting their forward units just 700 meters from the Islamic State stronghold’s western entrance.
Meanwhile, Turkish tanks continue to shell al-Bab from afar while a direct rebel attack on the city has been temporarily offset by the loss of Qabasin.
Nevertheless, since launching operation ‘Euphrates Shield’ in August, the Turkish Armed Forces and FSA have captured a total of 217 villages and towns.
240 - 240Shares
Be Civil
This is a Civilized Place for Public Discussion
Please treat this discussion with the same respect you would a public park. We, too, are a shared community resource — a place to share skills, knowledge and interests through ongoing conversation.
These are not hard and fast rules, merely guidelines to aid the human judgment of our community and keep this a clean and well-lighted place for civilized public discourse.
Make it better
Improve the Discussion
Help us make this a great place for discussion by always working to improve the discussion in some way, however small. If you are not sure your post adds to the conversation, think over what you want to say and try again later.
The topics discussed here matter to us, and we want you to act as if they matter to you, too. Be respectful of the topics and the people discussing them, even if you disagree with some of what is being said.
Now the hard part!
Be Agreeable, Even When You Disagree
You may wish to respond to something by disagreeing with it. That’s fine. But remember to criticize ideas, not people. Please avoid:
Instead, provide reasoned counter-arguments that improve the conversation.