Battle of Raqqa (2013)
The battle of Raqqa, also known as the first battle of Raqqa and code named by rebels as the "Raid of the Almighty",[7] was fought for control of the northern Syrian city of Raqqa during the Syrian civil war between Sunni Islamist rebel insurgents and the Syrian Arab Army. Rebel forces launched the offensive in early March 2013, and declared themselves in "near-total control" on 5 March, making it the first provincial capital claimed to come under rebel control in the civil war.[16] The battle, on the opposition side, was primarily led by the al-Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham.[17]
Not to be confused with Battle of Raqqa (2017).Battle[edit]
Rebel forces, mostly Sunni Islamist groups, based in the countryside surrounding Raqqa launched a surge into the city between 3 and 5 March, advancing from the north and overrunning army positions at the city's northernmost entrance.[21] Most rebels who took part in the battle came from areas outside the Raqqa Governorate.[7] They engaged forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad in heavy fighting around key state buildings, eventually driving out the army. Rebels seized control of the main square in the city on 4 March, and symbolically tore down a large golden statue of Syria's former president Hafez al-Assad, late father of the current president.[16]
Although, according to al-Akhbar, the city (which had been surrounded on four sides by checkpoints) did not fall militarily, pointing out that, despite not having a formidable Syrian Army deployment, it was not normal that Raqqa fell in hours. The Lebanese newspaper reported that the morning of the attack Syrian forces manning the eastern checkpoint pulled out, handing over the city's eastern entrance—and the entire eastern district—to the fighters of the Muntasir Billah Brigade and al-Nusra, while officers of the Syrian military police and the Hajana—the border guard—were seen moving their equipment, without any harassment from the opposition fighters, from the center of the city to the headquarters of the 17th Division, before the opposition brigades advance.[6]
Rebels also stormed the residence of the provincial governor Hasan Jalali, reportedly capturing him along with the head of the Raqqa Governorate branch of the Baath Party, Suleiman al-Suleiman.[20]
Government forces retreated from the city westwards and eastwards, and also remained 60 km from the city at the provincial airport.[21] The Syrian Air Force carried out airstrikes against rebels in the city after its fall.[22]
On 5 March, footage emerged of both Hasan Jalali and Suleiman al-Suleiman surrounded by jubilant rebel fighters.[23]
Ahrar ash-Sham (part of the Syrian Islamic Front), al-Nusra Front, and the Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman Brigade were the main rebel groups involved in the battle. Several groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army were also involved.[7]
Among those killed in the fighting were also the top al-Nusra commander for Raqqa governorate, as well as the main provincial Ahrar ash-Sham field commander.[4] Raqqa's police chief was also killed. Some residents pleaded with rebels not to enter the city, fearing it would bring retribution from government forces.[23]
The last pockets of government resistance in the city were eliminated on 6 March, when rebels seized several key security buildings where loyalist troops were hiding, prompting the activist group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights to officially declare that Raqqa was fully under rebel control.[24] The Syrian Air Force conducted 25 air-strikes against the city in an attempt to dislodge the opposition forces. In total, 39 people were killed, including 17 in a strike on a square.[13] At least 10 of those killed were confirmed as rebel fighters.[11]