Syrian Aircraft Bomb Area Near Jordan Crossing Following Rebel Takeover

Syrian military aircraft bombed areas in close proximity to the main crossing into Jordan on Thursday, following reports that insurgent groups fighting the regime had seized the Nasib crossing in southern Syria the day before.

The capture of the crossing puts most of the 230-mile border area stretching up to Israel in the hands of rebel groups, Reuters reports.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), the Syrian military dropped barrel bombs on the area on Thursday and rebels reported escalated bombing raids on insurgent-held towns in the southern province of Daraa, a vital battleground and direct route to Damascus.

The takeover meant there was no longer a regime presence on the border with Jordan, Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Observatory, said.

Jabhat al-Nusra militants claim they participated in the capture of Nasib, though rebel groups denied their involvement, accusing them of looting the crossing following its capture.

Jordan said yesterday it had temporarily closed its border crossing with Syria as a precautionary measure due to escalating violence on the other side of the frontier.

The crossing serves as a major transit route for transportation of goods between Turkey and the Gulf, though traffic through the border crossing has fallen dramatically from pre-conflict levels.

Jordan, a U.S. ally, has pressured rebels groups in the past not to take over the key crossing so that it could remain open to trade with Damascus.

“The Syrian army, which accuses the staunch U.S. ally of harboring rebels on its soil, said the kingdom had deployed its troops inside the crossing after the rebels took control. Amman denies providing training and arms for the insurgents,” Reuters reports.

Rebel groups control larges stretches of territory in southern Syria and have expanded their control over the area in recent weeks.

Last week they seized full control of the ancient town of Bosra al-Sham, ousting pro-regime forces from the area after days of heavy fighting.

The capture of Nasib comes after several setbacks for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, including the capture of Idlib – the second provincial capital lost by President Assad’s forces in the four-year conflict, following the loss of Raqqa two years ago – by Jabhat al-Nusra and other groups including Ahrar al-Sham.

Additionally, the Islamic State, which controls large swathes of territory in northern and eastern Syria, has started to encroach into regime-held territory in the west of the country. Last week the group reportedly massacred 45 people in a government-held area near Hama.

Reports yesterday claimed the group had seized control of parts of Yarmouk refugee camp on the outskirts of Damascus, putting it “just a few kilometers from Assad’s seat of power.”

Palestinian Fighters Backed by Rebel Groups Retake Parts of Yarmouk Refugee Camp Seized by ISIS

Fighters from Palestinian factions and Syrian rebel groups have retaken areas of the Palestinian refugee camp Yarmouk, in Damascus, from the Islamic State, after ISIS militants seized control of large parts of the camp a day prior, Newsweek reports.

“Syrian rebel groups entered the camp and helped the Palestinians push back ISIS in fierce clashes,” Abdulrahman, the SOHR head, told AFP news agency.

The clashes between IS militants and fighters of Aknaf Bayt al-Maqdis battalions had continued until after midnight in Yarmouk Camp.

“There is conflicting information about whether Aknaf Bayt al-Maqdis battalions, backed by Islamist groups, could retake the whole areas or [whether] IS are still taking control over some areas in the camp,” according to a SOHR statement.

ISIS controls large sections of territory in eastern Syria. However, this is the first time that the group has launched a major attack near the heart of Syria’s capital of Damascus.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) said in a statement that the fighting would place Yarmouk’s civilians “at extreme risk of death, serious injury, trauma and displacement.”

Syria’s Yarmouk refugee camp, on the outskirts of Damascus, has been besieged by fighting between Syrian government forces and rebel forces since 2012. Thousands of Palestinian refugees are trapped inside the camp, facing starvation, malnutrition, disease and inadequate access to clean water and electricity.

The camp’s population has shrunk from approximately 150,000 to only 18,000 as conditions have worsened inside the camp and thousands have been forced to flee to neighboring countries or other parts of Syria.

Recommended Reads

• The Washington Post: The Girl in the ‘Heart-breaking Photo’ is Only One of 2 Million Syrian Child Refugees
• BBC: Nine Britons Held on Turkey–Syria Border
• Reuters: As Regional War Rages, Syria’s Assad Faces Setbacks
• The New York Times: ISIS Seizes New Territory in Deadly Attacks on Syria
• Reuters: Tunisia Says Plans to Renew Ties with Syria to Help Track Fighters
• BBC: Syrian Journey: Choose Your Own Escape Route
• Associated Press: Tunisia Restoring Diplomatic Relations With Syria

Photo Courtesy of AP Images