Shafaq News/ On Thursday, the Syrian army claimed victory in the battle for Zain al-Abidin Mountain, near Hama, following an ambush against opposition armed factions attempting to seize the strategic high ground.
"We do not yet know how the rapidly evolving situation around Hama will unfold," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said.
On the other hand, the Syrian state-run news agency, SANA, quoted a military source as saying that "joint Syrian-Russian airstrikes and artillery targeted militant positions and movements in Hama’s countryside on Wednesday evening, killing dozens of militants and destroying their equipment." The source denied claims that militants had entered Hama, stating, "Our forces are positioned across all directions near and far from the city, fully prepared to repel any potential attack."
Kurdish Advances in Northern Syria
Meanwhile, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reported territorial gains in northern Aleppo, seizing critical locations from Turkish-backed factions. The SDF captured the Babiri water pumping station, a key source of drinking water for Aleppo, as well as Khafsah in southern Manbij, following fierce clashes with the Turkish-aligned Syrian National Army (SNA), according to SOHR.
The Observatory reported 11 SNA fighters killed in the confrontations. Additionally, the SDF expanded its reach toward Kweiris Military Airport, leveraging gains made by the SNA earlier in the week, including their takeover of the Shaibha region and Tell Rifaat in northern Aleppo.
In eastern Syria, the SDF launched operations under what it called the "Battle for Return," targeting villages controlled by the Syrian government and Iran-aligned forces in Deir ez-Zor. By Tuesday, an SDF commander told Alhurra news outlet that the group had secured the outskirts of three villages east of the Euphrates River.
Nationwide Escalations
The developments in Hama come amid a surge in attacks across Syria. Armed factions made their most significant advance in years last week, capturing parts of Aleppo, Syria's second-largest city, in a surprise assault that disrupted previously stagnant frontlines and intensified instability in the war-torn region.
According to the UNHCR Representative of Syria, Gonzalo Vargas Llosa, roughly 150,000 people have fled their homes due to the escalating conflict in Aleppo and surrounding areas in less than a week "and it will unfortunately very likely continue to rise. The blankets, mattresses and water our partners and us are giving them may relieve their suffering momentarily. But it will not be enough.”