Siege of al-Fu'ah and Kafriya

35°58′54″N 36°42′06″E / 35.9817°N 36.7017°E / 35.9817; 36.7017

Siege of al-Fu'ah and Kafriya
Part of the Syrian Civil War

Syrian rebels bombard al-Fu'ah and Kafriya using rocket artillery.
Date28 March 2015 – 19 July 2018
(3 years, 3 months and 3 weeks)
Location
Result

Rebel victory

  • Government forces and civilians reached an agreement to evacuate from Fu'ah and Kafriya on 17 July 2018[10]
Belligerents

Tahrir al-Sham (2017–18)
Army of Conquest (2015–17)[1]

Ahrar ash-Sham (Syrian Liberation Front since February 2018)
Syrian opposition Free Syrian Army[3]

 Syria
 Iran[6]
Allied militias:
Hezbollah[6][7]
Quwat al-Ridha[8]
Kata'ib Hezbollah[9]
Commanders and leaders
Sheikh Abu al-Hassan al-Tunisi [11]
(al-Nusra and al-Qaeda commander)
(Katibat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad' leader)
Jamil Hussein Faqih [6][7]
(Hezbollah operations leader in al-Fu'ah and Kafriya)
Units involved

al-Nusra Front/Tahrir al-Sham

Syrian Armed Forces

Hezbollah-affiliated local militias

  • Saryat al-Shaheed Abu Yasir[6] (since 2015)
  • Saryat al-'Ishq[6]
  • al-Wilaya Scouts
    • Imam Mahdi Scouts[6]
    • Fatima al-Zahara' Regiment[6]

Iran Iranian Armed Forces

Strength
3,000–4,000 (2015; per gov.)[15] 4,000 (2015)[16]
Casualties and losses
650+ killed (gov. claim)[15]
74–100+ killed (Sep. 2015 assault)[17]
40+ killed (Sep. 2015 assault)[18]
7 civilians killed (Sep. 2015 assault)[18]
90+ civilians and government soldiers killed or wounded (March–Dec. 2016)[19][20]

The siege of al-Fu'ah and Kefriya was a siege of the towns of al-Fu'ah and Kafriya in the Idlib Governorate, towns with majority Shia populations and controlled by the Syrian government during the Syrian civil war. The siege began with a Sunni Islamist rebel assault on the capital of the province in March 2015, resulting in the capture of Idlib. On 18 July 2018, the besieged government forces reached an agreement with Tahrir al-Sham-led rebels to evacuate them and civilians from the two towns.[10]

  1. ^ "Al Qaeda and allies form coalition to battle Syrian regime in Idlib". Long War Journal. 24 March 2015.
  2. ^ a b Joscelyn, Thomas (18 September 2015). "Al Nusrah Front, allies strike 2 Shiite towns in Idlib province". Long War Journal.
  3. ^ ""Free Syrian Army" condemns the agreement of (Kafriya and Foua')". El-Dorar Al-Shamia. 3 April 2017. Archived from the original on 10 April 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  4. ^ Tomasz Rolbiecki (20 June 2018). "Saraya Darayya – A Group Motivated By Revenge". Syrian War Daily. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2018.
  5. ^ Leith Fadel (31 August 2015). "Jaysh Al-Fateh Launches Their Largest Assault on Kafraya and Al-Fou'aa". Al-Masdar News. Archived from the original on 24 March 2019. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi (18 December 2016). "The Situation in al-Fu'a and Kafariya". Syria Comment. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
  7. ^ a b Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi (10 September 2018). "Exile from Kafariya: Interview". Syria Comment. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
  8. ^ Farahmand Alipour (27 August 2015). "Syrian Shiites take up arms in support of Assad's army". al-Monitor. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
  9. ^ "Kata'ib Hezbollah's Syrian Wing: Interview".
  10. ^ a b "Syria: Buses arrive to evacuate two rebel-besieged Shia towns". Al Jazeera English. 18 July 2018.
  11. ^ Thomas Joscelyn (19 September 2015). "Jihadists say al Qaeda veteran killed during assault on Shiite towns in Syria". Long War Journal. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  12. ^ a b c Paraszczuk, Joanna; Anvar, Barno (23 September 2015). "Taliban-Aligned Uzbek Suicide Bomber Attacks Shi'ite Village In Syria". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  13. ^ Joško Barić (17 March 2017). "Syrian War Daily – 17th of March 2018". Syrian War Daily. Archived from the original on 18 March 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  14. ^ Ripley 2018, p. 33.
  15. ^ a b Fadel, Leith (29 September 2015). "Over 650 Islamist Rebels Killed During the Battle for Kafraya and Al-Fou'aa". Al-Masdar. Archived from the original on 27 September 2016. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  16. ^ "Syria army, rebels reach deal on Zabadani, Idlib villages: source". Lebanon Daily Star. 24 September 2015.
  17. ^ "Temporary truce begins in four Syrian towns". Al-Jazeera. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  18. ^ a b "Ceasefire agreed for 3 Syria battlegrounds". Business Insider. 20 September 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  19. ^ Bulos, Nabih (23 September 2016). "'A massacre is inevitable': Punishing siege drags on for two Shiite villages in Syria". Los Angeles Times.
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference 72h was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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