DAMASCUS, Syria—Syrian government forces on Tuesday broke a siege imposed by the ISIS group on a northern military air base since 2013, marking the first major achievement by President Bashar Assad’s troops since Russia began its airstrikes in late September, state media said.
A state TV report said government forces have met with troops that were defending the Kweiras air base in the northern province of Aleppo. Syrian troops, backed by pro-government gunmen, launched a large-scale offensive to reach the base last month under the cover of Russian airstrikes.
ISIS has been besieging the base since 2013 when they defeated rival militant groups who had already been surrounding the base for a year.
“We are inside the air base,” a Syrian soldier that took part in the offensive told state TV Tuesday evening. “We have met our friends and the situation is good.”
Tuesday’s push is a major victory for the government against ISIS — which controls nearly half of Syria. Syrian troops tried in the past to reach the air base with no luck but Russian airstrikes appear to have helped in forcing ISIS from the area.
ISIS extremists had been besieging the nearly 1,000 soldiers inside the base since 2013, but the forces there have managed to hold on despite repeated attacks using multiple suicide bombings.
Another officer speaking from the base told state TV “with the liberation of Kweiras, we will liberate other areas.”
