ISIS Militants Have Driven Government Forces Out of Palmyra

Despite the advances of the Syrian army in Aleppo, reports indicate that forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad have lost control of the historic city of Palmyra, which is now under the control of ISIS militants. According to reports, on Sunday, the Islamic State group has once again seized major parts of the historic city of Palmyra, Tadmur. In this context, Reuters reported that in a battle that took place on Sunday in Palmyra between ISIS militants and the Syrian army, supported by Russian airstrikes, both sides claimed victory. A report from Agence France-Presse, citing the Russian Ministry of Defense, stated that in heavy airstrikes that began on Saturday night, more than 300 ISIS fighters were killed, and 11 tanks and 31 vehicles were destroyed, forcing ISIS members to leave the city. The ISIS group had managed to enter Palmyra by defeating Syrian army forces the previous day, and on Sunday, it claimed on its news website, Amaq, that its militants had only retreated from small areas and were returning to regain full control of Palmyra. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in Britain, also confirmed this news, with its head, Rami Abdulrahman, stating that despite Russian airstrikes, ISIS has regained all of Palmyra and is searching every corner of the city for Syrian soldiers. Palmyra, which dates back to the era of ancient Roman rule, had been under ISIS control since May 2014, and in April of this year, Syrian government forces attempted to reclaim it. The significance of recapturing Palmyra by the Syrian army was that by driving ISIS militants out of this city, the group would effectively lose desert areas leading to the Iraqi border, significantly reducing its territory. The situation in Palmyra comes as, according to a report from Agence France-Presse on Sunday, the Syrian army, with Russian air support, has managed to reclaim over 85% of the city of Aleppo. Meanwhile, the Syrian state news agency announced that nearly 8,000 people have fled from areas in Aleppo still under rebel control. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that this number is 10,000 and stated that since late November, more than 120,000 people have left rebel-controlled areas in Aleppo.