2024 Syrian opposition offensives

2024 Syrian opposition offensives
Part of the Syrian civil war

Map of offensives in Syria
  Controlled by Ba'athist Syria
  Controlled by the Syrian opposition
  Controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces
  Controlled by the Israel Defense Forces
Date27 November – 8 December 2024
(1 week and 4 days)
Location
Result

Syrian opposition victory

Territorial
changes
Belligerents
Commanders and leaders
Mazloum Abdi
Units involved
Strength
  • 15,000 (est. 2022)
  • 70,000–90,000 (est. 2020)
  • 170,000 (2023)
  • 50,000 (2023)
100,000 (2021)
Casualties and losses
  • 311 killed
  • 60 killed
  • c.1,000 killed (Assad government claim)
220 killed, 21 captured
25 pro-Iranian militiamen killed
15 IRGC killed
1+ killed
3 killed and several captured
111 civilians killed
370,000 civilians displaced

On 27 November 2024, a coalition of Syrian revolutionary factions called the Military Operations Command led by Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and supported by allied Turkish-backed groups in the Syrian National Army (SNA) launched an offensive against the Ba'athist regime's armed forces in Idlib, Aleppo and Hama Governorates in Syria. Codenamed Deterrence of Aggression by HTS, this was the first military offensive campaign launched by opposition forces in the Syrian civil war since the March 2020 Idlib ceasefire. It initially began as a localised offensive targeting towns in the Idlib and Aleppo countryside, later evolving into a nationwide campaign that culminated in the toppling of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

On 29 November 2024, HTS and later the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) entered Aleppo and captured most of the city, amid the collapse of pro-government forces. The next day, opposition forces made rapid advances, capturing dozens of towns and villages as pro-government forces disintegrated, and advanced toward Hama in central Syria, subsequently capturing it on 5 December. By 6 December, the SDF captured Deir ez-Zor in an offensive east of the Euphrates, while the newly formed Southern Operations Room and Al-Jabal Brigade captured Daraa and Suwayda in an offensive in the south. The HTS advanced further south toward Homs. The US-backed Syrian Free Army (SFA) took control of Palmyra in the southeast of the country.

On 7 December 2024, Southern Operations Room forces entered the Rif Dimashq Governorate from the south, and came within 10 kilometers of the capital Damascus. Later, opposition forces were reported to have entered the suburbs of the capital. SFA forces moved towards the capital from the south east. By 8 December, they had captured Homs, which effectively cut Assad's forces from Syria's coast. The same day, rebels also captured the capital Damascus, toppling Bashar al-Assad's government and ending the Assad family's 53-year-long rule over the country.