Nov 17, 2014

DAMASCUS, Syria — Syrian rebels declared their control over the city of Nawa in the western countryside of Daraa — 85 kilometers (53 miles) south of Damascus and only 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from the border with Israel — on Nov. 9, after battles began Nov. 1 against the regime’s forces in the region. The fighting ended with the “liberation” of areas formerly controlled by the Syrian army, taken during the “Demolition of the Wall,” a rebel operation that brought down the army’s first line of defense of the capital against attack from the south.

Rebel fighters were able to break the regime siege of the town of al-Shaykh Maskin, near Daraa, on Nov. 6. They penetrated the town through battles that led to the fall of Brigade 82, one of the Syrian army’s largest military bases. Rebels then broke into the town and opened the road between al-Shaykh Maskin and the city of Nawa on Nov. 6. This was how rebel fighters were able to cut the supply routes of the Syrian army and lay siege to its positions, which accelerated their total control over the area.

The fall of the area to the rebels closed the door on the Syrian army in the northern triangle of the Hauran plain, which includes the city of Nawa, al-Shaykh Maskin and Sheikh Saad, which fell to the rebels on July 15. This triangle constituted a military safe zone for the Syrian army in the south and the center from which to launch operations in the region.

A military source in the Syrian army, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Al-Monitor, “The army's control over the past few months was limited to the roads leading to the region through agricultural and rugged areas, while militants controlled the main roads to these villages.” The source said, “The areas controlled by the Syrian army and the opposition-controlled regions overlap, which explains the ongoing confrontations on the frontlines there. The fall of these regions had a negative impact on the old road between Damascus and Daraa as militants took full control of Nawa, al-Shaykh Maskin and Brigade 112, to put pressure on the main road and cut off supplies to the Syrian army in Daraa.”

The source said, “Militants have an additional goal beyond controlling these villages, which is to relieve the pressure on the town of Atman, located at the eastern entrance of Daraa, [which has been under] siege by the army for months now.” According to the source, the loss of the battle in the region was a surprise to the Syrian army in the south and the results were disappointing since they paved the way for the militants to extend full control over the governorate of Daraa.