Syria. It took them a long time to achieve it. Now, they apparently don't know what to do. In the north of Syria, terrorists tried to breach the government forces' defenses in the provinces of Latakia, Hama, and Aleppo. But ultimately, they are suffering losses and losing territory. There's another escalation in the Idlib de-escalation zone. Militants from the former Al-Qaeda branch in the Arab Republic provoked it. Why did terrorists need it and what will radical groups' activity lead to? And what is the role of Russian-speaking militants there?
This is War, a program about how modern conflicts work, wars that are already over, are on-going, or will begin soon, and which concern us, of course.
It isn't the first time and probably isn't the last that Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham terrorists did everything possible so that fire was opened again in the de-escalation zone in the north of Syria. Last week, militants organized a number of attacks on the government forces' positions. They created several large divisions for that. They reinforced them with tanks, armored vehicles, and pickup trucks carrying heavy machine guns. Here's the chronology of the terrorists' actions. Several groups took part in it. But leaders of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham were in control of them.
On August 5th, the leader of former Al-Nusra — which is now the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham group — claimed that the militants, whom he controls, won't comply with the ceasefire in the Idlib de-escalation zone. A day after Julani's statement, 12 Syrian servicemen and 4 civilians were injured, and the ceasefire was violated 25 times. It got even worse. On the night of August 7th, about 50 terrorists attacked Syrian servicemen near the village of Al-Hwaiz. The militants used missile and heavy artillery in the attack. That same morning, the radicals flung a battalion reinforced with tanks and armored vehicles into the battle. The terrorists used a suicide bomber driving a pickup to breach the defenses. As a result of the attack, the terrorists breached the government forces' defenses and advanced over 500 yards. Later, near the Tall Malah heights, about 100 radicals also tried to breach the Syrian troops' defenses. Government forces managed to stop the terrorist squad. A day later, militants from Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham and other radical groups tried to repeat the attacks. In addition, they opened mass-fire on inhabited localities near the contact line. In the mountains of Latakia, radicals started to fire rocket artillery at the Russian Khmeimin base. Four rockets exploded 2,200 yards north-east of the airfield. The fire resulted in the deaths of two locals and four injured. There's a child among those injured. No Russian servicemen were injured. On August 9th and 10th, radicals also attacked divisions of the government forces. They used a multiple launch rocket system.
They also used bomb launchers. Fourteen Syrian servicemen were killed near Achan. Terrorists carried out an artillery softening-up before the attack. They used hand-crafted super-caliber shells and standard 120-mm munitions. Afterward, they flung a group of 70 militants into the battle. But that offensive was repelled. Another nine Syrian servicemen were killed in an attack by radicals near the village of Ikka. Later, there was another offensive where Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham terrorists used about 50 militants, armored vehicles, pickups carrying machine guns and suicide attackers. They launched artillery and airstrikes on terrorist groups. Gangs suffered substantial losses and were thrown to their original positions. All those days, the Russian Aerospace Forces' aviation launched surgical strikes on the terrorist groups' strongpoints. Russian pilots destroyed militants' armored vehicles and artillery. Here's the head of the expert group of the Russian Academy of the General Staff Alexander Likhonosov. He'll help us figure everything out.
-So, the militants did everything possible to violate the ceasefire in the Idlib de-escalation zone. All week long, they made serious attempts of attacks not only on some checkpoints or strongpoints but also government forces' defenses. They breached those defenses and advanced 500-1,000 yards. Supported by Russian aviation, the government forces fought off those attacks. What should be done with terrorists in the de-escalation zone? It's clear that we won't agree with them, isn't it?
Alexander Likhonosov, head of the expert group of the Academy of the General Staff: Look, when they created the de-escalation zone, there was a big hope and opportunity to reach an agreement peacefully. This period of over one year wasn't in vain because the firing stopped. The militants didn't fully withdraw — they rather pretended to withdraw heavy weaponry from the de-escalation zone. But it brought some results. When Jabhat Al-Nusra militants took practically the entire Idlib de-escalation zone under control, after rebranding, their name was changed, but the essence is the same. In essence, it's a branch of Al-Qaeda in Syria. After they seized power, it happened that there weren't any militants or opposition left, with whom it was possible to make a deal. In that situation, their attacks, which were pretty serious and big, there were about 300 shootings in the last ten days alone, about 60 servicemen of government troops were killed. There were material losses. In those ten days alone, about three civilians were killed. Dozens of both civilians and Syrian servicemen were injured. It became clear that it's impossible to negotiate with them. Absolutely uncompromising militants, who work for money, came to power there. Militants and especially contract fighters, concentrated there, won't go for a peaceful settlement. So there's one option left — to destroy them.
-It seems that the Idlib de-escalation zone has become a kind of an enclave of international terrorism, international terrorist groups. And this enclave... This enclave uses terrorist organizations as an umbrella. It includes hundreds if not thousands of militants, who came from the CIS countries, our North Caucasus republics. This is a real threat to the security of Russia. Well, has this threat been considered, analyzed, studied? What kind of people are there?
-This is a real threat. It really exists. In Russia, we have well-functioning mechanisms to identify those militants going there. What kind of people are they? They're from Russia, Central Asia, other Caucasian countries, including Azerbaijan and Georgia. They form a multi-ethnic group. It surprises me when they try to present them as fighters for Islam. It isn't about Islam at all. They're mercenary fighters. They go to make money, good money. Even not fighting, being on the defensive, they get $20 per day. That's good money. Especially given the economic issues in Central Asia. In fact, until the economic issues in those countries are solved, they'll join the ranks of militants. There's an agreement with the CSTO countries to create a single center to monitor those fighters, to prevent them from crossing borders after committing a crime so that they couldn't come to Russia or another country. It'll prevent them from doing so. It'll monitor everything. Every militant will be in the database. His every movement both in the CSTO countries and the CIS countries will be tracked. We agreed to combat militants together.
-So, you know, they say that the thesis that we should fight terrorism at a distance is given too much importance. It isn't so indeed. Idlib is clear proof that it's better to combat terrorism there, rather than later in our country.
-It was the main goal of the treaty with the Syrian government to combat terrorism at a distance to prevent those problems from arising here. The world doesn't realize that this problem is very close and this plague of the 21st century can spread. And we've seen their plans and maps of the so-called caliphate where almost half of the globe was painted black. They seem to be competing with Hitler and Napoleon. They have a similar ambition.
This terrorist activity couldn't pass without a response. Especially since the most capable Syrian Armed Forces' divisions near the de-escalation zone in the north of the country. They fought off terrorists' attacks and liberated a number of important settlements from militants. I wouldn't say for sure but on the map, it looks like a so-called trap. If the Syrian armed forces close it near Khan Shaykhun, several thousand terrorists and their accomplices will be surrounded.
Actually, we should note again the leading role of the Syrian Armed Forces battalion run by General Suheil in fighting off terrorists' attacks and liberating a number of settlements in the south of the de-escalation zone. From August 6-9, the Tiger Forces fought off Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham terrorists' attacks on the settlements of Al-Hwaiz, Al-Hamameyat, Al-Jubain, and Tell Malah in the north of the province of Hama. Then, the battalion's subdivisions, supported by the Russian Aerospace Forces, cast out terrorists from groups such as Ajnad Al-Kavkaz, including militants from Dagestan and Chechnya, and the Turkistan Islamic Party, from the dominant terrains. Suheil's servicemen liberated the settlements of Al-Zakah, Zaytuneh, Kafr Ayn, Madaya, Al-Habit. In the future, government forces can liquidate the so-called Al-Lataminah positions.
Although, it's clear that the militants are ready to hold the line. They've had the opportunity for years to substantially dig in. Over the course of the fighting, the terrorists even managed to bring down a Syrian aircraft. Its pilot is a captive of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham's leaders. This is footage from the liberated settlement of Zakah. Apparently, it's an ordinary militants' reinforced strongpoint. Terrorists drove people away from residential buildings and turned civilian facilities into barracks and gun posts.
Ahmed Makhdaf: “We haven't been in our homes for six years now. Militants seized this area very quickly but we managed to flee. We abandoned everything that we had. We managed to take only the sheep. Those who failed to leave at once lost everything.”
Terrorists didn't only drive them from their homes but took their cars, cattle, money, just everything. They made a command center at the school. It's nothing new, though.
Said Makhmar, teacher: "I was teaching children here when the militants came here several years ago. First of all, they entered the school and drove out the students and teachers. They occupied it as if they owned it. They didn't care about the little children and their classes. The terrorists cared only about our building. It was high and spacious. They made a command center here. We didn't hold any more classes and probably won't hold any for a long time. As you see, the school is ruined and it requires major repairs. I think that the militants are absolutely delusional people who descend to any barbarian acts even with respect to children. They're criminals. I've got nothing else to say".
Under the village, terrorists built a multi-branch network of passages and tunnels. This is the footage made by our colleagues. This is how Syrian armed forces found the underground communications. Radicals could hide there from air raids and shootings, hold meetings. The tunnels were equipped with ventilation and wood-stoves. But even such defensive constructions don't help the militants now.
It's also important to note that in the province of Idlib that became probably the biggest enclave of international terrorist groups. there are hundreds of militants from the CIS countries and Russian North Caucasus, who fight as members of Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham. It's for you to see the scale. Militants from Uzbekistan in Jama'at Al-Tawhid wal-Jihad fight in the interest of former Al-Nusra. Militants from Dagestan and Chechnya are members of Ajnad Al-Kavkaz. Russian-speaking terrorists from the CIS countries are members of Al-Muhajireen wal-Ansar. In Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, there are squads of people from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and radicals from Southern Russia, of course. Last week, a native of Dagestan was captured in the fights with the Syrian Armed Forces. Timirlan Temirkhanov was born in Buinarsk. He lived in Makhachkala. He's a financial analyst by education. He went to fight in Syria to make money. This is footage from his interrogation.
Timirlan Timerkhanov: "In my situation, one doesn't need tales about the fight for faith. I just wanted to make much money quickly. I came to Syria. I wasn’t going to spend the rest of my life in Syria running around with an assault rifle. They promised that after I made a certain amount of money, I'd be able to leave for Europe and live there peacefully, lacking nothing, and not working".
-Do you regret what you did?
-No, why should I? I only regret being captured.
-Do you not regret killing your brothers in faith, your Muslim brothers?
-It isn't about faith. It was just a job.
Many share this motivation there. Recruiters usually call to fight for the interests of Muslims in Syria to recruit new militants. But it's often simpler. There's no difference for them of where to fight for money. If they could, they'd fight in the Caucasus but the domestic intelligence services and Russian servicemen in Syria prevent them from doing so. Although they'd have sponsors for that now, just like they did in the 1990s. Terrorists in Syria's Idlib is a permanent security threat to Russia, and we shouldn't forget about it.
This was War with Evgeny Poddubny, a program about how modern conflicts work.
