Can Syrian rebels maintain momentum and take Damascus?
HTS met little resistance when entering Aleppo, but Assad may still be able to gather military support to defend the capital
- Assault on Aleppo: who are the Syrian rebels HTS and why are they advancing?
So far the rebel advance in Syria appears unstoppable. On Friday, the columns of pick up trucks and motorbikes of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and their allies were reported to have reached the outskirts of the city of Homs, only 170kms from Damascus, the capital.
The extraordinarily rapid advance made by the coalition of rebel groups has stunned not only observers and regional powers but also, it appears, the regime of Bashar al-Assad. HTS swept first from its northwestern stronghold into Aleppo, the country’s second biggest city, and then Hama, another major city 130kms further south down the strategic M5 highway.
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