On July 30, militants from the Liberation and Building Movement, a coalition within the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army, attacked several positions of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) near the village of Tadef in the northern Aleppo countryside.
Tadef is located around a kilometer to the south of the town of al-Bab, the main stronghold of Turkey’s proxies in northern Syria.
Turkish-backed militants shelled SAA positions with mortars and other heavy weapons then clashed with army personnel for around an hour. The militants claimed they have destroyed a field headquarters, a mortar post, a fortified position and a machine gun of the SAA. However, no casualties were reported.
The attack was reportedly a response to recent artillery strikes by the SAA that hit positions of Turkish-backed militants in the outskirts of al-Bab.
The SAA and its allies will not likely let the attack go unpunished. Russian warplanes have already made a number of reconnaissance sorties over al-Bab and its outskirts. The Russian Aerospace Forces may be preparing to carry out airstrikes on militants’ positions there.
The attack on Tadef was likely meant to intimidate the SAA, who recently increased its presence in the Kurdish-held parts of the northern Aleppo countryside. The Turkish military and its proxies are currently preparing for an operation against Kurdish forces in northern Syria.
Source: South Front
