Battle of Idlib (2015)

Battle of Idlib (2015)
Part of the Syrian Civil War and
the 2015 Idlib offensive

Image of a typical olive field in the valleys surrounding Idlib
Date24–28 March 2015
(4 days)
Location
Idlib, Idlib Governorate, Syria
Result Rebel decisive victory[5][6][7]
Territorial
changes
  • Rebels capture Idlib city and besiege Kafarya and al-Fu'ah, while government forces retreat to al-Mastouma[8]
Belligerents

Army of Conquest[1]

Ajnad al-Kavkaz[2]
Farouq Brigades[3]

Syria Syrian Arab Republic

Hezbollah[4][unreliable source?]
Commanders and leaders
Abu Jamil al-Qutb †[3]
(Ahrar ash-Sham deputy leader)
Abu Kamal[9]
(Ahrar ash-Sham Central Area Commander)
Hassan al-Khalifa †[3]
(Omar al-Farouq Brigade commander)
Nathir Terman †[10]
(al-Nusra field commander)
Abu Abdullah Taoum †[11]
(Ajnad ash-Sham leader)		 Syria Mohamed Khair al-Sayyed[12]
(Governor of Idlib)
Al Hajj Walaa †[4]
(Hezbollah commander)
Units involved
Omar al-Farouq Brigade[3]
Tarkhan's Jamaat[2]		 Syria 11th Armored Division[13]
Syria 155th Brigade[14]
Strength
3,000–6,000 fighters[15] 330–380 (Special Operations Unit S.A.A Fighters)
Casualties and losses
132 fighters killed,[16]
36 infiltrators executed[17]		 66[13][18]–86[19] soldiers killed, 5 soldiers and 6 tanks captured[13][20]
11 civilians killed,[3] 15 prisoners executed by the Syrian Army[20]

The Battle of Idlib ("Operation to Free Idlib") was a military operation in the Idlib Governorate, during the Syrian Civil War, conducted by rebels against Syrian government forces defending Idlib city.[21]

  1. ^ "Al Qaeda and allies form coalition to battle Syrian regime in Idlib". Long War Journal. 24 March 2015.
  2. ^ a b Joanna Paraszuk (31 March 2015). "Ajnad al-Kavkaz tell how their Jamaat helped 'liberate' Idlib". From Chechnya to Syria. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Jabhat al-Nusra looks for battlefield breakout". Al-Monitor. Archived from the original on 31 March 2015. Retrieved 29 March 2015.
  4. ^ a b "مقتل أول قائد ميداني لحزب الله في معركة تحرير مدينة إدلب". Siraj Press. Archived from the original on 2015-07-13. Retrieved 2015-03-28.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference falls was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Syria crisis: Idlib 'captured by Nusra Front jihadists'". BBC News. 28 March 2011. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  7. ^ "Islamist fighters control Syrian city of Idlib: monitor". Reuters. 28 March 2015. Archived from the original on 28 March 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  8. ^ "Peto Lucem on Twitter". Twitter.
  9. ^ "Ibn Nabih on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  10. ^ "Hassan Ridha on Twitter". Twitter.
  11. ^ شبكة عاجل الإخبارية. "The leader of al-Qaeda-affiliated Ajnad al-Sham battalion killed in Idlib". breakingnews.sy. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-31.
  12. ^ "Rebels launch full-on assault of Idlib city". Syria Direct. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  13. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference largescale was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference complete was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ An Anxious Wait in Syrian City Held by Insurgents, New York Times
  16. ^ "142 بينهم 40 من قوات النظام والمسلحين الموالين لها، و57 مواطناً استشهدوا جراء قصف جوي وصاروخي من قوات النظام وتفجير سيارة مفخخة وتحت التعذيب وسقوط قذائف". المرصد السورى لحقوق الإنسان. Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
  17. ^ "archicivilians on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference critical was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ 34 killed (24–25 March),AFP 20 killed (26 March),SOHR 17 killed (27 March),[1] 14 killed (28 March),SOHR 1 died (6 April),SOHR total of 86 reported killed
  20. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference affiliate was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ "Syrian rebels launch offensive to capture Idlib city". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 24 March 2015.