Damascus (TDI): Syrian opposition forces have made significant gains in recent days, capturing the strategic city of Daraa, widely regarded as the birthplace of the 2011 uprising against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
The Southern Operations Room, a coalition of opposition factions, announced on Friday that they had taken full control of Daraa, according to media reports.
The city’s fall marks a symbolic and strategic blow to the Assad regime, though the Syrian Defense Ministry has not yet confirmed the claims.
In a parallel offensive, rebel forces have also captured the Nassib border crossing on the Syria-Jordan border, a vital trade route on the M5 highway that links Aleppo and Damascus.
Opposition fighters, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other militant factions, have made swift advances in the north, seizing Aleppo and Hama in under two weeks.
Their next target, the central city of Homs, is a key gateway between Damascus and the regime’s coastal strongholds.
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If Homs falls, it would effectively split regime-controlled territory, isolating the capital from crucial supply lines to the west.
Opposition forces reportedly captured the last village on Homs’ outskirts on Friday, moving closer to the city.
Syria Civil War
The escalation comes amid renewed conflict in a civil war that has stagnated in recent years due to ceasefires and foreign interventions.
The war has claimed over 300,000 lives and displaced millions since it began in 2011.
In the northeast, US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have made gains against regime forces, capturing Deir el-Zor and the Albu Kamal border crossing with Iraq.
These victories mark the third major city to fall from Assad’s control in a week, following Aleppo and Hama.
The shifting battlefield has drawn a response from Assad’s allies.
Iran, which has been preoccupied with tensions in Gaza, announced plans to bolster its support for the Syrian regime, including military equipment, intelligence, and satellite assistance.
Russia, another key backer of Assad, appears less engaged as it diverts resources to its ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
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The reduced Russian involvement has coincided with the opposition’s renewed momentum.
Meanwhile, unrest has spread to other regions.
In Sweida, Druze militias clashed with government forces, leaving at least three dead and resulting in the opposition’s seizure of local police stations and prisons.
Despite internal divisions among opposition factions, HTS leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani has sought to portray his group as a unifying force, vowing to rebuild Syria and facilitate the return of refugees.
