2016 Aleppo summer campaign
The 2016 Aleppo summer campaign started with a military operation launched on the northern outskirts of Aleppo in late June 2016, by the Syrian Arab Army. The aim of the offensive was to cut the last rebel supply line into Aleppo city.
2016 Aleppo summer campaign | |||||||
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Part of the Battle of Aleppo and the Syrian Civil War | |||||||
Map of Northern Syria during the offensive, with the area shown within the Aleppo City map marked by the box. Syrian Army control
Syrian Opposition control
SDF control
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant control | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Liwa al-Quds
Syrian Democratic Forces (27–30 July; 12–17 August) |
Turkey | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Fahd Jassem al-Freij Zoran Birhat (YPJ senior commander) Sharvan Efrin (YPG commander) Unknown YPG commander † |
Maj. Yasser Abd al-Rahim (official leader of Fatah Halab) Ammar Shaaban † (Harakat Nour al-Din al-Zenki top commander) Col. Mohammad Bakkar † (Sham Legion top commander) Kamal Ahmad † (8th Brigade commander) Abdel-Rahman Mansour † (Islamic Safwah Movement commander) Yusuf Zo'ah † (Army of Mujahideen general commander) (Army of Mujahideen commander) Abu Hajer Al-Homsi † (nom de guerre: Abu Omar Saraqib, Army of Conquest commander of Idlib province and Jabhat Fatah chief military commander) Abdullah al-Muhaysini (Jabhat Fateh cleric and leader) Abu Al-Muthanna † ("Inghimassiyeen" commander) Khaled Abu Anas (Ahrar al-Sham senior commander) Mustafa Al-Bayyour † (Ahrar al-Sham top commander) Khattab Abou Ahmad † (Abu Amara Brigades chief commander) Abu Hamza Al-Shami † (5th Brigade commander) Saif Allah † (Ahrar al-Sham tank commander) Ali Hamam † (Ajnad al-Sham top commander) Wa’el Diyab (WIA) (Ajnad al-Sham commander) Abu Leith al-Tunisi † (Ansar al-Islam commander) Mustafa Abu Jumaa † (Levant Front and Leon Sedov Brigade commander) | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
Hezbollah units
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al-Nusra Front / Jabhat Fateh al-Sham
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Strength | |||||||
Unknown number of soldiers, 100+ tanks, 400+ BMPs
120+ Naval Infantry advisors, several BMPs |
8,000–10,000+ fighters
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Casualties and losses | |||||||
688 killed (per The Inside Source; since 31 July) 625 killed (per SOHR; 31 July – 10 Sep.) |
1,051 killed (per The Inside Source; since 31 July) 948 killed (per SOHR; 31 July – 10 Sep.) | ||||||
718 civilians killed (31 July – 10 Sep.) |
By late July, the military had managed to sever the last rebel supply line coming from the north and completely surround Aleppo. However, within days, the rebels launched a large-scale counter-attack south of Aleppo in an attempt to both open a new supply line into rebel-held parts of the city and cut-off the government-held side. The whole campaign, including both the Army's offensive and subsequent rebel counter-offensive, was seen by both sides as possibly deciding the fate of the entire war.
The battle was also notable for the large loss of top rebel field commanders, with about three dozen being killed.
By early September, Syrian government troops had cemented their siege of the rebel part of the city.