Nov 18, 2015

ALEPPO, Syria — Opposition fighters have made progress in their critical quest to reach the central Syrian city of Hama, but now are being weakened by their efforts to defend Aleppo at the same time.

Hama is controlled by regime forces and their allies, who hope to use that position to access the towns of Kafriya and al-Fuah in Idlib’s countryside. Should that happen, the regime would penetrate the heart of opposition-controlled areas in northern Syria.

On their way south to Hama, opposition forces are reclaiming towns and hills that regime forces controlled for a long time. The most significant progress came Nov. 5, when it took over the city of Murak, which the regime had controlled since late October 2014. Also on Nov. 5, opposition factions declared control over the base of Tell Othman and al-Shanabra checkpoint, west of Kafr Nabuda. On Nov. 6, the opposition took over Qubaybat, Tell al-Tawil, Tal Skik, Atshan and Umm al-Haratein, which it had lost during the regime’s Oct. 10 attack under Russian air cover.

Despite Russian air support for the regime, the opposition took control over an estimated 40 square miles in the Hama governorate in just the first week of November. Yet, it seems opposition forces will have difficulty reaching Hama. Murak, their closest stronghold to Hama, is still 15 difficult miles away.

Hama, in central Syria, would provide a link from the capital Damascus, in the south, to northern Syria. Hama is also Syria's fourth-largest city in terms of population, where about 750,000 people live (according to 2010 statistics). The opposition sees an opportunity to gain the people's trust in Hama, where in 2011, hundreds of thousands of citizens protested against the regime. However, the city remained under the regime's control and has not seen any armed action, unlike cities in northern Syria.