The Northwest Syria Battles and the Local Defence Forces: Interview

In a recent interview with Alexander McKeever, the analyst Aron Lund has noted that as historians look back on the rapid collapse of the Assad regime, the events in Aleppo (and by extension the wider northwest Syria front) will be important to examine, particularly in terms of what was happening on the regime side. What was the role of various units of Syrian personnel and the role of the regime’s foreign allies?

The following interview was conducted recently with a source who had been linked to the Martyr Ali Zayn al-‘Abidin Berri Brigade, a unit that was part of the Iranian and Hezbollah-backed Local Defence Forces network and worked in particular with Hezbollah’s al-Radhwan special forces. Some notable issues discussed include whether the insurgent offensive was basically ‘pre-emptive’, what role, if any, Israeli strikes played in contributing to the collapse of the regime, and whether there was ‘betrayal’ within the ranks of the regime forces, in particular among some of the Local Defence Forces’ units.

Q: First, when the attack on Aleppo city took place, was this expected? How did the forces responsible for defending Aleppo prepare?

A: The expectation was that the Syrian army and auxiliary forces would attack Idlib and north Idlib countryside. Around a month and a half before [the insurgent offensive] began], Division 25 sent up reinforcements. The division was redeployed from Ithriya to north Aleppo countryside and Saraqeb [in Idlib].

Q: So the army was preparing for an offensive operation on Idlib?