Syria: Army Preparing for ISIL Offensive on Aleppo

Syrian army sources informed on Friday that they are preparing for their first ever war with ISIL in Northern Aleppo countryside.

ISIL has been engaged in battles with various anti-government militant groups in the Northern countryside of Aleppo in the last several weeks, and observers said ISIL has sustained over a thousand casualties in the infighting with rival groups in the region.

But, now sources in the Syrian army told FNA that units deployed in Northern Aleppo have fortified their positions in Sifat and Bashkoy regions in anticipation of an imminent war with ISIL, adding that the battle will be the Syrian army’s first with ISIL since the latter’s new round of offensive in the region in the last few months.

“After ISIL drove out the rival Al-Nusra Front terrorist groups and occupied Al-Wahshiyah village in Reef (countryside of) Aleppo, the contact line between the ISIL and the Syrian army has come very close, making close-range clashes inevitable,” the sources told FNA on Friday.

“ISIL’s movement in this front displays that it is seeking to open new frontlines against the Syrian army following its victory over rival groups, including those that have been equipped and sent by Turkey,” they added.

According to the sources, advancing towards the Syrian Army Infantry School will be ISIL’s next objective to the South of Al-Wahshiyah village.