Most of the armed groups in the northern governorate of Idlib have united forces and formed a new operations room to fend off any possible attack of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and its allies on the governorate, the news outlet Radio Idlib reported on July 29.
According to the pro-opposition news outlet, more than 70,000 militants in Idlib will fight under the command of the new operations room.
Syrian pro-opposition sources said that the new operations room will include Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the Syrian Liberation Front (SLF) and the National Front for Liberation (NFL). Furthermore, al-Qaeda-affiliated groups such as the Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP) and Horas al-Din will work under the operations room.
Idlib Radio’s claims are yet to be confirmed by any of the armed groups in Idlib. However, such a step seems possible after the recent defeats of opposition forces around the Syrian capital of Damascus, in northern Homs and in southern Syria.
It’s not clear if the new operations room will stick to defensive operations or if it will launch attacks on the government-held areas. Some HTS supporters claimed that the operations room may attack government positions near the Syrian coast. However, these claims sound far-fetched.