Last night, Syrian government forces, led by units of the Republican Guard, launched a military operation west of the Khanaser-Aleppo road, aiming to expand a buffer zone along this vital supply line to the government stronghold of Aleppo.
The advance followed the previous efforts by government forces around Khanasser. On January 19, the army liberated from ISIS the villages of Sirdah, Shuraymah, Rasem Askar, Masudiyah, Atshanah, Umm Miyal and Judaydah in the area east of the Khanaser-Aleppo road.
The recent developments show that pro-government forces have been working to expand a buffer zone along the supply line to Aleppo which had repeatedly been under military pressure from various “opposition factions” (a mainstream media term for al-Qaeda-linked terrorists when they attack the Khanaser-Aleppo road) during the battle for Aleppo.