Fighters from a U.S.-supported coalition led by Kurdish forces engaged in combat with Syrian government troops in northeast Syria early Tuesday, according to both parties involved. This development marks a new challenge for President Bashar al-Assad, who recently experienced a significant setback with the loss of Aleppo to a swift rebel offensive.

Additionally, airstrikes targeted militia groups aligned with Iran that are backing the Syrian government in this strategically important area, as reported by a security source in eastern Syria and a source from the Syrian army.

Both sources attributed the airstrikes to the U.S.-led military coalition, which is actively engaged in operations against the Islamic State in Syria and maintains a small contingent of American forces on the ground. Reuters has not been able to independently verify the involvement of foreign forces in the strikes, and the coalition has not yet responded to requests for comment.

The clashes occurring around a series of villages across the Euphrates River from Deir al-Zor, the regional capital, further complicate the military situation for Assad, whose forces were primarily focused on countering a renewed rebel offensive near Hama overnight.

The recent rebel takeover of Aleppo, Syria’s largest city prior to the conflict, represents the most significant military action in years, disrupting a stalemate that had persisted since 2020.

The most intense fighting on Monday and into the night occurred along the frontline just north of Hama, another key Syrian city, where control of several villages has shifted back and forth in recent days.

An operations room coordinating the rebel offensive, along with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring organization, reported on Tuesday that rebels had once again regained control of those villages. Two opposition sources indicated that the rebels were making progress in the countryside surrounding Hama.

Russian military aircraft have escalated their airstrikes against rebel positions in conjunction with government jets in recent days, according to reports from both factions. Syrian state media indicated that strikes were carried out in the northern Hama countryside by Syrian and Russian forces. Rescue teams have reported that airstrikes targeted hospitals in Aleppo and Idlib, resulting in civilian casualties.

Any prolonged escalation in Syria poses a risk of further destabilizing a region already affected by conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, where a ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group was established last week.

Since the onset of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the conflict has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, involved major global powers, and displaced millions of refugees. President Assad has maintained an advantage since receiving support from Russia and Iran a decade ago, although this backing has faced challenges due to significant losses inflicted on Iran’s Hezbollah allies by Israel in recent months.

STRUGGLE FOR CONTROL

The recent withdrawal of Assad’s forces has prompted a struggle for territorial control among various groups operating in the northwest, north, and east regions of Syria.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a coalition that governs eastern Syria with U.S. assistance, announced on Tuesday that its Deir al-Zor Military Council has taken on the responsibility of safeguarding seven villages that were previously under the control of the Syrian army. The Deir al-Zor Military Council consists of local Arab fighters affiliated with the SDF, which is primarily led by the Kurdish militia known as the YPG.

Syrian state media indicated that the army, along with allied forces, was successfully countering an assault by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on villages that represent the sole presence of the Syrian government along the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, an area predominantly controlled by the SDF. A Syrian military official stated that the SDF’s offensive aimed to take advantage of perceived vulnerabilities in government forces following recent rebel advances, and noted that the army, along with Iran-backed militia groups, was dispatching reinforcements.

INTENSE CONFLICT ZONE

The resurgence of hostilities in northeastern Syria, where the United States, Russia, Iran, and Turkey are all engaged, highlights the complex international dynamics influencing the conflict and the risks of escalation in this densely contested area. Iran announced on Monday that a meeting of foreign ministers from Turkey and Russia would take place in Doha next weekend, part of a diplomatic effort aimed at stabilizing borders that had been established earlier in the conflict. The SDF has been the primary Western-supported ground force in eastern Syria combating the Islamic State, which controlled a jihadist mini-state in the region from 2014 to 2017. Turkey views the SDF’s principal military faction, the YPG, as Kurdish separatists it classifies as terrorists, leading to a military incursion in 2017 to push them back.

Recent rebel gains have displaced the YPG from territories it previously held in and around Aleppo, including the Sheikh Maqsoud district and a corridor near Tel Refaat to the north. The SDF’s presence in northeastern Syria, which stretches along much of the border with Iraq, further complicates supply routes for Iran-backed militia groups supporting the Assad regime. On Monday, Reuters reported that numerous Iran-backed Iraqi fighters had crossed into Syria to assist government forces. Additionally, Israel has frequently targeted Iran-aligned forces in Syria, with Syrian state media reporting that an Israeli drone struck a vehicle near Damascus. The Israeli military has stated that it does not comment on foreign media reports.