Offensive
On 3 September 2016, ISIL sent two car bombs towards rebel positions in the mountains, but both were destroyed before they could reach their targets. Following this, ISIL forces stormed the rebel-held territory from three different axes, overrunning several positions and reportedly killing more than 20 rebels. [9]
Three days later, an ISIL convoy was deployed as they launched a second assault in the area. During the clashes, the rebels destroyed an ISIL T-72, a bulldozer, and a ZU-23-2, the latter with a BGM-71 TOW missile. [11] The next day, Jaysh al-Islam recaptured a hill near Dumayr from ISIL. [12]
On 9 September, ISIL launched a third attack against rebel forces in the mountains. Rebels led by Jaysh al-Islam and various Free Syrian Army factions repelled the assault and dozens of ISIL fighters were killed. [10] Hundreds of rebel reinforcements reportedly arrived in the region the next day. [8] On 13 September, ISIL recaptured the three hilltops of Jabal Zubaydi, Tall Daba'a and Jabal al-Afa'i. [1] On 14–15 September, rebels launched a counter-attack to regain Jabal al-Afa'i. [13] On 17–18 September, ISIL forces launched a successful assault against rebel positions at Badiya, killing four and capturing forty defenders, [14] while losing two vehicles in return. [15] Heavy fighting between rebels and ISIL in the area was reported on 19 September, as the ISIL offensive entered its 3rd week. [16]
On 21 September, Ahrar al-Sham and the Forces of Martyr Ahmad al-Abdo recaptured the Rajem al-A'ali area, giving them the control of 40% of the al-Afa'i Mountains, while a Syrian Air Force MiG-23 targeting ISIL crashed in the region. [17] [18] Rebel forces made further progress later that day, retaking several positions at Jebal Batra. [19] The pilot of the crashed government jet landed in rebel territory in the mountains and as a result of a truce in the area, the rebels handed him over to the Syrian Armed Forces and reportedly received small arms and ammunition from government forces in return. [3] By 23 September, the rebels were in control of 70% of Jabal al-Afa'i. [20]
On 26 September, unknown gunmen attempted to assassinate Harith Siwar, commander of Jaysh al-Islam in the Eastern Qalamoun Mountains. [4] On 29 September, ISIL forces launched a new attack in the eastern Qalamoun Mountains, leading to heavy clashes with the rebel defenders. [21] In the night of 1–2 October, ISIL fighters stormed eastern Jabal al-Afa'i amid heavy fighting with FSA forces. [22] Two days later, Jaysh al-Islam repelled another major ISIL attack on Jabal al-Afa'i and al-Naqab. [23] On 9 October, 12 ISIL fighters and an unknown number of rebels were killed in clashes after an attack by ISIL on al-Khandaq and al-Naqab mountain. [24] Five rebels were killed in clashes on the following day. [25] On 15 October, rebels launched an assault on Kahil Tes and Mahol areas. [26]
Aftermath
On 26 October, Syrian military bombarded areas under ISIL control in the region. [27] On 2 November, clashes renewed between ISIL and rebels, concentrated in the area of Jabal al-Afa'i. [28]
On 6 November, the rebels launched their own offensive, [29] [30] attacking ISIL positions. The rebels stated they had captured three checkpoints, with 7 ISIL fighters and 4 rebels being killed in the clashes. [30] With the recent advances, rebels broke the siege imposed by ISIL on them in the region and had started advancing northwards to retake territory previously captured by the group. [29]
On 29 December, FSA forces launched an offensive toward ISIL lines in the eastern Qalamoun and captured five villages. [31]
This page is based on this
Wikipedia article Text is available under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant 
Harith Siwar (WIA) [4] 
Abdul Rahman Abu Mansour [6] 
Helicopters and fighter jets [3] 
