Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)
The Battle of Aleppo (Arabic: مَعْرَكَةُ حَلَبَ, romanized: Maʿrakat Ḥalab) was a major military confrontation in Aleppo, the largest city in Syria,[78] between the Syrian opposition (including the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and other largely-Sunni groups, such as the Levant Front and the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front)[79] against the Syrian government, supported by Hezbollah, Shia militias and Russia,[54][80] and against the Kurdish-majority People's Protection Units (YPG). The battle began on 19 July 2012 and was part of the ongoing Syrian Civil War.[81] A stalemate that had been in place for four years finally ended in July 2016, when Syrian government troops closed the rebels' last supply line into Aleppo with the support of Russian airstrikes. In response, rebel forces launched unsuccessful counteroffensives in September and October that failed to break the siege; in November, government forces embarked on a decisive campaign that resulted in the recapture of all of Aleppo by December 2016.[82] The Syrian government victory was widely seen as a turning point in Syria's civil war.[83][84]
"Battle of Aleppo" redirects here. For other uses, see Siege of Aleppo (disambiguation).
The large-scale devastation of the battle and its importance led combatants to name it the "mother of battles"[85] or "Syria's Stalingrad".[86][87] The battle was marked by widespread violence against civilians,[88] repeated targeting of hospitals and schools (mostly by pro-government air forces[89][90] and to a lesser extent by the rebels),[91][92][93] and indiscriminate aerial strikes and shelling against civilian areas.[80][94][95][96] It was also marked by the inability of the international community to resolve the conflict peacefully. The UN special envoy to Syria proposed to end the battle by giving East Aleppo autonomy, but this was rejected by the Syrian government.[97] Hundreds of thousands of residents were displaced by the fighting and efforts to provide aid to civilians or facilitate evacuation were routinely disrupted by continued combat and mistrust between the opposing sides.[98][99]
There were frequent instances of war crimes during the battle, including the use of chemical weapons by both Syrian government forces and rebel forces,[100][101] the use of barrel bombs by the Syrian Air Force,[102][103][104][105] the dropping of cluster munitions on populated areas by Russian and Syrian forces,[106][107] the carrying out of "double tap" airstrikes to target rescue workers responding to previous strikes,[108] summary executions of civilians and captured soldiers by both sides,[109][110] indiscriminate shelling and use of highly inaccurate improvised artillery by rebel forces.[111][112] During the 2016 Syrian government offensive, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights warned that "crimes of historic proportions" were being committed in Aleppo.[113]
After four years of fighting, the battle represents one of the longest sieges in modern warfare and one of the bloodiest battles of the Syrian Civil War, leaving over 31,000 people dead,[76][114] almost a tenth of the estimated overall war casualties at that time.[115] Fighting also caused severe destruction to the Old City of Aleppo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[116] An estimated 33,500 buildings have been either damaged or destroyed.[117] It is considered one of the worst urban battles fought in the 21st century, due to its length and destruction.[118][78][119][114]
Bombed out vehicles in Aleppo
Aftermath[edit]
On 22 February 2018, it was reported that the YPG had agreed to hand over the eastern districts of the city of Aleppo to the Syrian government. According to Syrian state television, this decision was made to reinforce positions around the region of Afrin, and to halt Turkey's offensive.[235] This came days after pro-Syrian government fighters agreed to bolster the Kurdish forces in the northwest.[236]
SOHR and a witness later said that Syrian government forces had entered the areas controlled by the Kurdish fighters. YPG spokesman Nouri Mahmoud however denied this claim.[237] A YPG commander later stated that Kurdish fighters had shifted to Afrin to help repel a Turkish assault. As a result, he said the pro-Syrian government forces had regained control of the districts previously controlled by them.[238]
Throughout the start of 2020, the SAA made advances in the Idlib and Aleppo countryside. On the 17th of February, they had regained control of the last rebel-held suburbs in Aleppo city, gaining full control for the first time since 2012.[239]
The Citadel of Aleppo was damaged during the war.
A destroyed factory in Aleppo, Karm al Jabl area, 4 March 2013
Time magazine wrote:
The Al-Madina Souq, a major souq (market) in Aleppo, was affected by a fire in September 2012. The Irish Times reported that around 700 to 1000 shops were destroyed by the fire, which had been caused by firing and shelling.[333] The following month, there were reports of the Great Mosque of Aleppo being damaged by rocket-propelled grenades.[334] Fighting with mortars and machine guns caused damage to the main gate and the prayer hall. The attack continued in the mosque till it was repelled by the army.[334] The Citadel of Aleppo was damaged during Syrian army shelling.[335]
On 2 October, Irena Bokova, the Director-General of UNESCO, expressed her "grave concern about possible damage to precious sites" and requested the combatants to "ensure the protection of the outstanding cultural legacy that Syria hosts on its soil".[336] She cited the Hague Convention for protecting the heritage sites.[337]
A 2014 report by UNITAR found, using satellite images, that 22 out of the 210 examined key structures had been completely destroyed. 48 others had sustained severe damage, 33 moderate damage and 32 possible damage. The destroyed sites included the Carlton Citadel Hotel, destroyed to its foundations in a bombing in 2014, the madrasas of al-Sharafiyya and Khusruwiyah. Damage to the Great Mosque of Aleppo, whose minaret had been destroyed, was confirmed. According to official estimates, 1500 out of the 1600 shops in the souqs had been damaged or destroyed.[338]
The Washington Post wrote that the scale of devastation of Aleppo "evoked comparisons with cities like Grozny and Dresden". It noted, however, that the destruction was mostly concentrated in the rebel-held part of the city: about 70 to 80 percent of the destruction was in the east. UN satellite images determined more than 33,500 damaged residential buildings in the city, most of them multi-apartment blocks. The costs of reconstruction were estimated at between $35–40 billion.[117] Al-Hakam Shaar and Robert Templer proposed that the deliberate destruction of Aleppo was a form of "urbicide".[208]
Reactions[edit]
Media coverage[edit]
The coverage of the siege of Aleppo in the Western media emphasised the suffering of civilians and often contained graphic pictures of injured and dying children. As there were almost no international journalists there, the reporting was outsourced to local activists linked to the rebels who held the city. This was significantly different from the news coverage of the sieges of Raqqa and Mosul carried out by the Coalition forces, where the civilian losses were downplayed.[339]
Domestic reaction[edit]
The Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, said on the occasion of the 67th Anniversary of the Syrian Arab Army in August 2012, "the army is engaged in a crucial and heroic battle ... on which the destiny of the nation and its people rests ..."[340] After gaining nearly complete control of eastern Aleppo, Assad referred to this success as an "important point in history of Syria". He also called upon remaining rebel factions to surrender in exchange for amnesty.[341]