Battle of al-Rai (August 2016) | |||||||
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Part of the Syrian Civil War | |||||||
Map of the greater campaign in the Aleppo Governorate which includes al-Rai | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Free Syrian Army | Islamic State | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Ismail Ahwaz
[2] (FSA commander) Saleh Zein [3] ( Sham Legion field commander) Col. Ahmed Osman [4] (Sultan Murad Division squad commander) Lt. Col. Abdul Moneim [4] (Northern Division commander) | Unnamed ISIL leader ( POW) [5] | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Harakat Nour al-Din al-Zenki | |||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
10+ killed [6] |
The Battle of al-Rai was fought in August 2016 between the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the border town of al-Rai, part of the northern Aleppo Governorate on the border with Turkey, which resulted in the FSA capturing the town.
On 8 April 2016, rebels from the Hawar Kilis Operations Room captured al-Rai and more than a dozen other villages, but withdrew after an ISIL counter-offensive 3 days later that recaptured almost all the villages they have lost. The rebels also briefly took over the town for a few hours in June before being driven out. [3]
On 15 August 2016, after heavy artillery bombardment rebels began to storm the al-Rai grain silos and captured the silos along with several other positions. [7] However, they were forced to withdraw the next morning after an ISIL counterattack from the north which recaptured all the points ISIL lost. [8] Landmines played a role in slowing down the offensive. [2]
On 17 August, FSA fighters launched a second assault after targeting IS positions with rocket artillery, breaking through the first lines of defense and re-entering the town. [9] The FSA blew up 3 car bombs during the battle [10] and fully captured al-Rai and its border crossing later that day, taking a number of surrendering ISIL militants as prisoners of war. [5]
On the same day, the USAF operating as part of the CJTF-OIR conducted air support for the rebels during the battle by bombing several IS units near al-Rai. [11] Fighting continued in the outskirts of the town as ISIL retained its headquarters in nearby Dudyan. [2]
Due to the short time given to rebels to fortify the area, IS launched a rapid counter-offensive from the east on 19 August and recaptured the grain silos and nearby hilltops. [12] However, the rebels repelled the attack on the town and claimed to have killed more than 10 IS fighters. [6] FSA fighters also recaptured the grain silos the next day. [4]
On 20 August, a large number of rebels and a military convoy containing more than 50 vehicles loaded with heavy and medium weapons from al-Rai were transferred to the Turkish border with Jarabulus, as the Turkish Armed Forces prepared for an attack on Jarabulus. [1]
Between 27 and 28 August, the rebels claimed to had capture three villages east of al-Rai. [13] [14] However, it was reported that on 27 August, IS recaptured al-Rai. [15] [16] The next day, al-Rai was once again reported to be rebel-held. [17] By 4 September, FSA captured all of the ISIL-controlled territory along the Turkish-Syrian border. [18]