13. Jänner 2014

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Die Nachrichtenagentur Agence France-Presse (AFP) berichtet am 16. Juli 2013 unter Berufung auf die in Großbritannien ansässige oppositionelle Beobachtungsstelle für Menschenrechte Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, dass Kämpfer der Opposition zehn Kontrollpunkte der Regierung in Nawa eingenommen hätten, während bei den anderen Kontrollpunkten der Stadt Kämpfe toben würden:

„Meanwhile, in the southern province of Daraa, ‘opposition fighters seized control of 10 army checkpoints in the town of Nawa, while clashes raged on near the town's remaining checkpoints’, said the Observatory.” (AFP, 16. Juli 2013)

Der arabische Fernsehsender Al Jazeera mit Sitz in Katar berichtet am 17. Juli 2013, dass Kämpfer der Opposition laut eigenen Angaben die meisten Teile der Stadt Nawa in der Provinz Deraa eingenommen hätten:

„Opposition fighters in Syria say they have captured most parts of Nawa city in Deraa province.“ (Al Jazeera, 17. Juli 2013)

Im August 2013 berichtet die Nachrichtenagentur Reuters, dass trotz der Gewinne der Rebellen in der Provinz Deraa die Regierungskräfte nach wie vor eine starke Präsenz im Süden Syriens hätten. Während die Streitkräfte der Regierung einige Kontrollpunkte um Städte und Dörfer verloren hätten, hätten sie ihre Präsenz in Städten wie Sanameen, Nawa, Izraa und Deraa gefestigt, die nach wie vor fest unter der Kontrolle der Regierung stünden:

„Rebels point to the strategic importance of Deraa, a city only 90 kms (55 miles) from Damascus and offers a direct route north to Assad's seat of power in the capital. Although the region has over the last year seen significant rebels gains including an area that stretches almost 40 km along the border mainly east of Deraa, Assad's forces still have a formidable presence in southern Syria. A picture collated from diplomats and rebels suggests that while the army has lost dozens of fortifications and checkpoints encircling villages and towns across the fertile agricultural area, it has also changed strategy to cut losses. It has regrouped and consolidated its presence in towns such as Sanameen, Nawa, Izraa and Deraa city itself, which remain firmly in army control.

The city's main landmark Panorama area, close to the largest stadium in southern Syria, remains a formidable army barracks where artillery rounds from tanks and rocket launchers regularly shell rebel-held rural towns with impunity. Even in Nawa, a town of around 80,000 people where a July rebel offensive forced the army to evacuate several checkpoints, Assad's troops are still broadly in control. Assad's forces also hold on to the international border post of Nasib, mainly due to Jordanian pressure on rebels to leave the highway open to trade and traffic with Damascus.” (Reuters, 15. August 2013)

Syria Direct, eine Non-Profit-Medieninitiative, berichtet am 1. Oktober 2013, dass sich die Kämpfe in der Provinz Daraa zwischen Regierungstruppen und der oppositionellen Freien Syrischen Armee (FSA) intensiviert hätten. Flüchtende ZivilistInnen würden sich in der Nähe der jordanischen Grenze sammeln. Die jordanische Regierung behaupte, dass die Grenze offen sei, doch Reporter hätten berichtet, dass die Grenze geschlossen sei und nur in Notfällen geöffnet werde:

„The refugee crisis is worsening in south Syria’s Daraa province fighting intensifies between the FSA and the regime’s army, pushing civilians south toward tightened borders with Jordan.

A ‘large number’ of people are displaced inside the province, says Human Rights Watch researcher Lama Fakih, who added that HRW is unable to access the area to determine an exact number. ‘According to our reports, there is not enough food for these people and doctors face hardships reaching them.’

A fresh battle for the town of Tafas has further driven Syrian civilians from their homes, activists say. Blocked from heading anywhere but south by regime forces, thousands of the internally displaced are congregating at points close to the Syrian border. ‘The Jordanian government says that its borders are open, but our reporters are saying that the border is closed and only opens in emergencies,’ said Fakih.

In Tafas, the FSA has captured at least two checkpoints at the entrance of the town, and now hold the west, north and south of it, said Nayef al-Sari from the Daraa Media Office, who has a reporter embedded with the rebels in Tafas. ‘Fighting is still ongoing east of the town at the [regime’s] Agrar military-training center,’ al-Sari said.” (Syria Direct, 1. Oktober 2013)

Die US-Denkfabrik Institute for the Study of War (ISW) berichtet im Oktober 2013, dass Deraa eine der umkämpftesten Fronten in Syrien sei. Im September habe es in der Provinz, in der der Aufstand begann, nach Damaskus die häufigsten Zwischenfälle gegeben. Die islamistische Jabhat al-Nusra sei zu einem wichtigen Akteur in der Region geworden. So habe sie am 28. September gemeinsam mit anderen Rebellengruppen den Grenzposten Deraa-Ramtha zu Jordanien eingenommen. Der strategische Vorteil sei eher symbolisch, da Jordanien den Grenzübergang bereits zwei Jahre zuvor geschlossen habe. Parallel dazu habe es Operationen von anderen Gruppen gegeben, die zu einem bemerkenswerten Vorstoß der Rebellen in der Provinz geführt hätten. Seit Mitte Juli seien mit der FSA verbündete Kräfte auch um die Stadt Nawa aktiv:

„Despite limited media coverage, Deraa is one of the most contested battlefronts in Syria. Deraa province, where the uprising began, has been second only to Damascus in the number of kinetic incidents throughout the month of September. In addition to giving insight into the current state of play between regime and rebel forces in the war, the unfolding dynamics among rebel groups in Deraa serve as indicators for how the armed opposition is taking form in Syria’s southern front. Coordinated, sophisticated operations in Deraa demonstrate the continued capacity for rebel collaboration, as well as a shift in the power dynamics among the various groups operating in the province. Jabhat al-Nusra (JN) in particular has emerged as a prominent player. Jabhat al-Nusra’s prominence in Deraa, particularly their willingness to work with civilian governance structures, indicates that the group has been able to adapt to the specific local conditions present in this conflict arena.

[…] On September 28, 2013, Jabhat al-Nusra, in coordination with the Al-Haramein Brigades of the Ahrar al-Sham Islamic Movement and other rebel groups, seized control of the Deraa-Ramtha post along the Jordanian border in operation ‘Pounding of the Fortresses.’ A day after the operation began, Abu Anass, a JN leader in southern Deraa, appeared in an interview that was broadcast on an FSA-affiliated YouTube channel to describe how JN’s engineer corps covertly moved to the customs office of the border crossing and placed numerous explosives along the exterior wall. JN fighters then detonated the explosives, destroying the wall and allowing assault squads to raid the customs building and take control of it. JN fighters were also able to take control of a nearby mosque and several buildings around the customs office. The maneuvers that Abu Anass described indicate a high level of sophistication in operational planning. While ‘Pounding of the Fortresses,’ the named JN operation, focused on the border areas around Deraa city, simultaneous operations by other rebel groups led to a notable rebel advance throughout the province. Following the seizure of the border crossing, rebels captured the Masakin Jalin and al-Fiqia checkpoints. On September 29, 2013, several rebel groups announced another joint operation called the ‘Battle of Uniting Ranks.’ Rebel forces under this joint operation included affiliates of the Free Syria Army (FSA), the Syrian Islamic Front (SIF), and Ahrar al-Sham and have launched attacks on an army base and military barracks in Tafas, a town northwest of Deraa city. FSA-affiliated rebels have also been fighting around the town of Nawa since mid-July, with the aim of opening a military supply line into the town. Though the seizure of the Deraa-Ramtha border crossing has been widely reported, its strategic advantage is largely symbolic. The Jordanian government closed the crossing almost two years ago and rebels have held the porous border area around the nearby town of Tel Shahab since March. The frequently stated aim of ongoing operations by rebel fighters is to remove regime positions which divide Deraa into the eastern and western areas. This would allow the rebels to control a swath of territory across southern Deraa in which they can exercise freedom of movement. In aggregate, recent gains in Deraa increase rebel groups’ control of a contiguous area which can potentially function as a launching pad for a push into Damascus.

[…] As rebels have consolidated their hold over southern Deraa, regime strikes have focused on limiting their capacity to advance towards Damascus. The regime has intensified bombardments and air raids on towns which lie on critical supply lines, particularly those between Deraa city and Damascus. This strategy is in line with regime strategy in northern part of the country, where airstrikes and bombardments also focus on cutting off supply lines.” (ISW, 11. Oktober 2013)

Agence France Presse berichtet am 16. Oktober 2013 von einer Bombenexplosion im Gebiet von Nawa, die 21 Menschen getötet habe:

„A bomb killed 21 people in Syria on Wednesday, with sources variously blaming rebels and the army, as the United States urged a key opposition group to join peace talks.

[…] The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a pickup truck was passing through an area of the southern province of Daraa when the bomb exploded. ‘Twenty-one people were killed in the Nawa area... among them four children and six women, in a blast that detonated as their vehicle went past.’ The Observatory's Rami Abdel Rahman said they were members of three families probably fleeing Nawa, which has been the scene of heavy fighting. Activists accused troops of planting the explosives, the watchdog added, but state news agency SANA said ‘21 terrorists (rebels) were killed when they were booby-trapping a car.’” (AFP, 16. Oktober 2013)

Die jordanische Tageszeitung The Jordan Times berichtet am 19. Oktober 2013 von schwerem Beschuss von Nawa:

„The influx came amid calls by Damascus and opposition forces for a temporary ceasefire during the Eid holiday, which celebrates the Muslim feast marking the end of the pilgrimage season. The ceasefire period began on Tuesday and concluded on Friday evening, witnessing scattered clashes in northeastern Syria.

Meanwhile, violence continued to cut off main access routes into Jordan from southwest Syria on Saturday, with Jordanian security sources and Syrian rebels reporting heavy shelling in the border villages of Al Nawa and Tasseel.” (The Jordan Times, 19. Oktober 2013)

In einem Artikel vom 27. Oktober 2013 berichtet dieselbe Zeitung von hunderten Flüchtlingen, die über die jordanische Grenze geflüchtet seien, während tausende entlang der Grenze gestrandet seien:

„Hundreds of Syrians fled to Jordan on Sunday amid reports that thousands of stranded refugees along the Jordanian-Syrian border are nearing starvation. The Jordan Armed Forces said some 400 Syrians crossed into the Kingdom early Sunday, continuing a week-long rise in new arrivals that saw 2,000 crossings over the past four days. Due to renewed violence across southern Syria that continued to cut off access routes into Jordan, the vast majority of the new arrivals entered via eastern desert routes near the Iraqi border, according to relief officials.

The influx came as regime shelling and intensified clashes between government and rebel forces continued to trap thousands of civilians in towns and villages along the Jordanian-Syrian border, cutting off large swathes of southern Syria from basic food supplies and humanitarian aid.

Syrian rebel officials and activists said more than 50,000 civilians across the border region remained cut off from basic food and medical supplies for the sixth straight week on Sunday, warning that some 20,000 displaced people are facing ‘starvation’ in the under-siege southern towns.

[…] Meanwhile, Damascus’ renewed aerial offensive across southern Syria entered its seventh straight week on Sunday, with Jordanian security sources and rebel officials reporting heavy shelling in the border towns of Al Nawa, Al Inkhee and Daal. Some 4,000 stranded refugees remained threatened by Sunday’s bombing raids, according to rebel forces, who claim that over 110 displaced civilians have lost their lives in the military offensive.” (The Jordan Times, 27. Oktober 2013)

The Jordan Times berichtet am 9. November 2013, dass tausende Flüchtlinge von schwerem Beschuss entlang der jordanisch-syrischen Grenze bedroht seien. Die Luftoffensive der Regierung in Südsyrien gehe bereits in ihre neunte Woche. Unter den angegriffenen Städten sei auch Nawa:

„Meanwhile, thousands of refugees remained threatened by heavy shelling along the Jordanian-Syrian border on Saturday, as Damascus’ aerial offensive across southern Syria reportedly entered its ninth straight week. According to the Free Syrian Army (FSA), some 5,000 displaced civilians were caught in heavy shelling across southern Syria on Saturday as regime forces targeted the border towns of Sheikh Maskin, Nawa and Al Nimr.” (The Jordan Times, 9. November 2013)

Die iranische Nachrichtenagentur FARS berichtet am 14. November 2013, dass eine syrische Armeeeinheit 20 Bewaffnete auf der Straße von Tsil nach Nawa in Daraa getötet habe:

„A Syrian army unit killed 20 militants, including non-Syrians, in an ambush near the national forest on Tsil-Nawa road in Daraa countryside, a military source said on Thursday.” (FARS News Agency, 14 November 2013)

BBC Monitoring berichtet, dass laut Al Jazeera vom 2. Dezember 2013 die bewaffnete Opposition in Daraa militärische Fortschritte gemacht habe und unter anderem die strategischen Hügel in der Stadt Nawa kontrolliere:

„Doha Al-Jazeera Satellite Channel Television in Arabic, an influential Qatari Government-funded pan-Arab news channel, at 1731 GMT on 2 December reports: ‘The armed opposition made military progress in the countryside of the governorates of Dar’a and Al-Qunaytirah in Syria. They controlled the Armament Battalion in Busra al-Harir and the strategic hills in the town of Nawa.’” (BBC Monitoring, 4. Dezember 2013)

The National, eine englischsprachige Publikation in Abu Dhabi, berichtet im Jänner 2014, dass die radikale islamistische Gruppe Al-Nusra auch in Deraa an Einfluss gewonnen habe:

„Al Nusra and other radical Islamist groups have dominated the anti-Assad insurgency in the north and east of Syria, but until recently they have been less numerous in Deraa and elsewhere in southern Syria. Now, however, Al Nusra is rising in the south. Its fighters have entered into secret, ad hoc and often uneasy alliances with units of the more moderate, western-backed Free Syrian Army. ‘They offer their services and cooperate with us, they are better armed than we are, they have suicide bombers and know how to make car bombs,’ an FSA fighter explained.

[…] For the moment, FSA units remain more powerful than Al Nusra in Deraa province, in part because they are more numerous. Although exact figures are impossible to compile, rebels in Deraa say Al Nusra fighters number in the hundreds, not thousands, unlike FSA affiliated units. Yet Al Nusra has a growing influence out of proportion to its numbers. In September, the group took over a key border point on the Syrian-Jordanian frontier, which prompted Jordanian authorities to close the crossing. In a deal between the FSA and Al Nusra, the militant group’s fighters moved away from the border, although they remain in the Old Jumrek area between the border and the city of Deraa.

[…] In Deraa feelings are mixed among civilians and the FSA about the relative merits and dangers of a growing, Al Qaeda-affiliated group, even if it has proven to be less aggressive towards other rebels than Isil, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, another Al Qaeda faction that has grown powerful in Syria but which has little, if any, presence in Deraa.” (The National, 5. Jänner 2014)

 

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