Syrian Rebels Seize Rural Territory While Assad Forces Focus On Major Cities -- Washington Post
AL-BAB, Syria — War came late to this little farming town set amid rolling hills in the Syrian countryside east of Aleppo, where the absence of upheaval was long construed as an implicit signal of support for the government led by President Bashar al-Assad.
But once the battle started in May, it unfolded at lightning speed, at least by the standards of a revolt that is dragging into its 17th month. Residents are celebrating their near-complete victory over regime loyalists after the town’s last army garrison fled Sunday, its food supplies gone and its morale shredded.
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My Comment: The rebels are holding territory outside the cities .... but have yet to control a major entire city itself. This is why the battle for Aleppo is so important .... if Assad loses control of this city, it will only be a matter of time before Damascus is threatened .... and after that it will be a retreat to the Alawite communities in the northwest of the country for a last stand.