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On August 23, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) deployed several units and more heavy weapons in the northern Hama countryside, the southeastern Idlib countryside and the northern Latakia countryside, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
The US-based monitoring group said that the deployment of these units is a part of the preparation for an upcoming large-scale military operation against the remaining militants in northern Syria.
A source in the SAA’s 4th Division told SouthFront that the operation may begin after Eid al-Adha, which ends on August 24. Furthermore, the source revealed that the SAA will attack from several fronts.
According to a report of the SOHR, which was released a day earlier, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) and several other armed groups have built new fortifications and reinforced their positions between southwestern Aleppo and northern Hama. This indicates that the militants are well aware of the SAA’s plans.
Despite of the military build-up on both sides, local observers believe that a military operation in northern Syria is impossible without a Russian-Turkish agreement, which is yet to be reached.
