Things have been going swimmingly for the SAA for the last couple of weeks. Initial SAA operations were characterized by slow going with jihadi counterattacks often succeeding. This was to be expected. The jihadis have been concentrating in the Idlib area for years, replenishing, refitting and preparing defenses. SAA operations were frequently halted by unexplainable ceasefires. But the combined air attacks by Syrian and Russian air assets and SAA indirect fire finally took their toll on the jihadis. The result was the encirclement of Khan Sheikhoun and all the jihadis south of there. The resulting cauldron was quickly reduced leaving the Turkish observation post at Morek surrounded by SAA and Russian troops. I bet the Turks feel silly sitting there. Operation Idlib Dawn continues.
[...]I'd venture the Turks feel more scared than silly. They have the Russians to thank for protection against a situation that evokes the French one at Dien Bien Phu.
There's lots more in TTG's update -- and in the SST comment section. But note this passage in the SouthFront report that TTG quotes at one point in his update:
... Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the al-Qaeda-affiliated Wa Harid al-Muminin operations room and the Turkish-backed National Front for Liberation (NFL) attempted to hold onto their positions in al-Tamanah and its surroundings with their full strengths. ...TTG's discussion was published the day before the U.S.-led missile strikes on the HQ of al Qaeda-affiliated Ansar al-Tawhid. From SouthFront's report on the strikes:
Ansar al-Tawhid and its allies in Wa Harid al-Muminin played a key role in the recent battles against the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in southern Idlib and northern Hama. These factions are all close allies of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).[putting a finger to her lips] Shhhhh if you're suddenly putting two and two together.
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