“The future of the north is in great danger,” said Michael Ratney, the US state department’s Syria envoy, in a statement posted online. Idlib was seized by a group of largely Islamist opposition fighters supported by US-backed rebels in a major campaign in the spring of 2015. The two most powerful groups in the province were the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham and HTS. The attempt by the al-Qaida-linked militants to establish overt control over Idlib was met with protests by civilians, who urged them to withdraw from major cities and allow civilian control over local government. The US has worked with Russia to mediate local ceasefires in parts of Syria, including a recent agreement to set up a “de-escalation” zone in the south where rebels near the Jordanian border are battling the Assad regime.

Source: The Guardian August 04, 2017 04:00 UTC