Syria: Assad Attacks Former Opposition Stronghold with Missiles and Artillery

A woman walks past a campaign billboard depicting Syrian president Bashar al-Assad before the election, which the local population of Deraa al-Balad declared fraudulent. Photograph: Louai Beshara/AFP/Getty Images
THE GUARDIAN: President attempts to crush simmering insurrection with unprecedented offensive against Deraa al-Balad

Bashar al-Assad has attacked a former opposition stronghold with missiles and artillery shelling in an attempt to crush a simmering insurrection, in an unprecedented development in Syria’s decade-long war.

Deraa al-Balad and its surrounds, a district of Deraa city in the southern province of the same name, was targeted with heavy weaponry in tandem with a ground push on three axes from two Syrian army divisions and allied Iran-backed militias early on Thursday morning, in a large offensive which continued throughout the day.

In response to the shelling, rebel gunmen launched counterattacks across the Deraa countryside, killing at least eight pro-regime fighters and capturing dozens of combatants at several military positions and checkpoints, local sources said. » | Bethan McKernan and Hussein Akoush | Thursday, July 29, 2021