(AhlulBayt News Agency) - In a coup, ISIS managed to wrestle the legendary city of Palmyra from the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) on Sunday after assembling a massive militants fighting force in eastern Homs.
Between 4,000 and 5,000 ISIS insurgents poured into Palmyra from several flanks, prompting the SAA to withdraw to more defensible positions west of the ancient city after initially fending off several assaults.
Stationed on the Palmyra front were approximately 1,000 SAA soldiers, including contingents of the National Defence Forces (NDF), the 11th Division, elements of the 18th Division along with the Shaheen Group (Tiger Forces branch).
Facing overwhelming ISIS numbers and an imminent threat of encirclement, these government forces found themselves forced to regroup on the western outskirts of the city.
In addition to capturing Palmyra city itself, the so-called Islamic State also captured Palmyra Airbase, the Hayyan gas field, Al-Dawa village, and the Al-Bayarat area following other territorial gains over the past 48 hours.
Recently, the SAA deployed the bulk of its elite factions in the battle for Aleppo; in the meantime, thousands of ISIS fighters crossed the border from Iraq, narrowly escaping the battle for Mosul in order to spearhead the ongoing Palmyra offensive.
Effectively, with manpower utterly disproportionate between the warring parties, local SAA commanders had to choose between a full-scale tactical retreat or leaving outnumbered government troops to be slaughtered by the rapidly advancing jihadist militants. To little surprise, the SAA's Palmyra command center opted for the former option.
Palmyra was otherwise liberated by the SAA in late March 2016 and strategically represented an important government salient which could have been utilized to relieve besieged government soldiers in the eastern city of Deir Ezzor.
Reinforcements arrive near Palmyra as Syrian Army regroups for counter-offensive
Following the devastating loss of Palmyra on Sunday, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) set up a new defensive line a few kilometers west of the famed city while exploring a potential counter-offensive.
Despite being heavily outnumbered, with some 1,000 government troops against an estimated 4,000-5,000 invading ISIS militants, several hundred additional Syrian soldiers arrived on Sunday afternoon in order to stiffen the SAA's defenses and boost morale.
The new defensive line was reinforced exclusively by the 'Qalamoun Shield', a largely tribal faction of the Syrian Armed Forces which has its roots in the mountainous Damascus countryside.
Should the Military High Command pursue a counter-offensive, SAA commanders could approach the task in two different ways.
In one scenario, the SAA would launch a rapid and remorseless counter-attack, thus denying ISIS any chance to fortify Palmyra and set up minefields on its vicinity; unfortunately, this instigates heavy casualties. Another somewhat cautious strategy would be to gradually retake the mountains around Palmyra while simultaneously unleashing Russian warplanes and Syrian artillery firepower on ISIS positions inside the city.
In any case, the Syrian Armed Forces must bring in additional military personnel if government forces are to mount an unstoppable counter-offensive. However, mopping up the battle for Aleppo is absolutely instrumental for this to happen as most of the SAA's seasoned soldiers are currently tied up in Syria's largest city.
Pictures of Sunday's Qalamoun Shield reinforcements can be found below:
