Battle of Anadan

The Battle of Anadan (Arabic: معركة عندان‎) was a ten-hour-long armed confrontation between the rebels of the Free Syrian Army and soldiers of the Syrian Army that occurred when FSA forces attempted to overrun a large army checkpoint in the Anadan area.[11] At the end of the battle, FSA fighters successfully seized the checkpoint.

Battle of Anadan معركة عندان
Part of the Battle of Aleppo and the 2012–13 escalation of the Syrian Civil War
Rebel fighters with a captured Syrian Army T-55 at the Anadan checkpoint during the battle
Date 29–30 July 2012 Location Anadan, Aleppo Governorate Result Rebel victory Rebels gain control of Anadan checkpoint
Belligerents
Free Syrian Army	Syrian Arab Republic Syrian Armed Forces
Commanders and leaders
1st Lt. Rifaat Khalil[1] (Muthanna ibn Haritha Battalion)	Mahmutcan Ateş
Units involved
Conquest Brigade Muthanna ibn Haritha Battalion[2] Al-Tawhid Brigade Free North Battalion[3]	Syrian Army Infantry Border Guard Brigade 111th Regiment
Strength
150 fighters[4] 1 BMP-1[5]	130+ soldiers[4] 12 tanks[6] 1 helicopter[6]
Casualties and losses
4 killed[7]	6 killed,[8] 25 captured,[7] 1–2 main battle tanks destroyed and 8 captured[9][10] 5 APCs captured[9]

Events

Rebels gather during the battle

At dusk on 29 July, First Lieutenant Rifaat Khali, commander of the Conquest Brigade in the area, mobilized 150 fighters to seize control of the Anadan checkpoint, a strategic location linking the city of Aleppo 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the south with the Turkish border to the north, which the FSA used as a source for supplies. The battle took place concurrently with the first night and day of the Battle of Aleppo itself.[1]

FSA fighters surrounded the checkpoint as night fell and began an assault against the garrisoned troops and besieged them. A force of 50 fighters out of an initial 150 fighters took part at first, using RPGs, machine guns, and assault rifles.[1][4] The besieged government soldiers called in artillery strikes from batteries based in Aleppo city, which pounded areas surrounding the checkpoint, striking nearby villages where FSA fighters were located, in a last-ditch effort to force the FSA to disengage, but failed to do so. Three hours after the attack began, a loyalist helicopter arrived and circled the area, but had little effect on the battle. The lack of reinforcements for the government soldiers during the whole ten hours led to speculation that the Syrian army was under significant military pressure in other areas of Aleppo.[6]

An FSA operated BMP-1 armoured personnel carrier supported the fighters, as they assaulted the base, firing at least 70 rounds into the checkpoint.[5] After ten hours of fighting, some of the government soldiers were able to break out and flee. At least six of them were killed and 25 others captured. The FSA lost four fighters, and an unknown number were wounded.[4][11]

Aftermath

After seizing the checkpoint, FSA fighters retrieved ammunition left behind by the defeated government forces. During the fighting, eight tanks were also captured, between four and seven of which were still operational; the operational ones were intended for use in the Battle of Aleppo.[11][9] At least some of the captured tanks were deployed northwards to Azaz, where they were used to support an attack on a loyalist-held airbase.[12] The rebels, however, pulled back from their attack on the airbase within a day after failing to capture it.[13]

References

1. "Syrian Soldiers 'Fled Like Rats': Rebels". TOLO News. 31 July 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
2. Bolling (2012), pp. 8, 9.
3. Bolling (2012), p. 8.
4. "Syria rebels seize strategic checkpoint - thenews.com.pk". The News International, Pakistan. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
5. "Syria: Rebels Plan Own Assault On Aleppo". Sky News. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
6. "CNN inside Syria: Firefight for control of army base – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs". Retrieved 25 October 2014.
7. "Bashar soldiers 'fled like rats': rebels | News24". News24. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
8. "FSA seizes checkpoint between Aleppo, Turkey as France to seek U.N. meeting". English.alarabiya.net. Archived from the original on 2016-02-03. Retrieved 2015-05-20.
9. Bolling (2012), p. 9.
10. "Syrian rebels seize strategic checkpoint between Aleppo and Turkey, according to rebel officer". Al Jazeera Blogs. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
11. "Syrian troops 'fled like rats' in checkpoint fight". Archived from the original on August 1, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
12. "Syrian rebels push to grab territory outside Aleppo - CNN.com". CNN. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
13. Matthew Weaver (3 August 2012). "Syria crisis: rows and more violence after Kofi Annan resigns - live updates". the Guardian. Retrieved 25 October 2014.

Bibliography

• Bolling, Jeffrey (2012). Rebel Groups in Northern Aleppo Province (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Institute for the Study of War.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)