Russian troops and diplomats flee Damascus - Defence Intelligence of Ukraine
Russians are fleeing the Syrian capital Damascus. The Russian military and diplomats are leaving the city in droves.
This was reported by the press service of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, Censor.NET informs.
"Opposition forces to the russian-backed Assad regime are actively advancing to the south of the country, with the first urban battles taking place in the cities of Hama, Homs and Suwayda.
The military contingent of the aggressor state of russia fled Hama and evacuated to the "Hmeymim" base. The head of the Russian coordination headquarters located in Hmeymim, Colonel-General Alexander Zhuravlev, stated that the situation was out of control of the Assad regime," the statement said.
According to the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, the first armed riots began in Damascus.
"Russian military personnel and diplomats began to leave the Syrian capital in a massive and urgent manner. The Russians also fled from the military base in Khan Sheikhun, leaving a significant arsenal of weapons and equipment there," they said.
On 1 December 2024, Russian military aircraft carried out air strikes in the Khan Sheikhun area. The goal was to destroy Russian equipment that had been transferred to the opposition forces.
"Against the backdrop of the panic escape of Russian troops, the news of the resignation of the commander of the russian contingent, general kisel, was widely spread in Arabic-language publics. colonel vadim baykulov, who commanded a unit of russian special forces, was also recalled to Moscow to explain to the leaders why the personnel under his command suffered casualties and military equipment was captured in Aleppo," the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine concluded.
Resumption of fighting in Aleppo
It should be noted that on 28 November, after four years of relative calm, fighting between Bashar al-Assad's forces and opposition groups resumed with renewed vigour on the outskirts of Aleppo.
"Hayat Tahrir al-Sham" announced a large-scale military operation against government forces. During the operation, they claimed to have captured over 400 square kilometres of territory, including strategically important areas.
November 29 "Hayat Tahrir al-Sham" (HTS), which leads a coalition of opposition forces in Syria, entered Aleppo and clashed with government forces on the western outskirts of the city.
On 30 November, the Syrian Armed Forces announced a "temporary withdrawal of troops" from Aleppo to prepare a counter-offensive against the opposition forces.
According to Al Arabia, rebels in Syria have taken control of Aleppo.
