Aleppo’s rebels brace for IS assault - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East
▻http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/04/syria-aleppo-rebels-is-marea-hawar-killis-attacks.html
The town of Marea is seen as the rebel’s largest stronghold in the northern countryside of Aleppo. It has remained steadfast in the face of the IS advance and attacks in August 2014. At the time, IS managed to gain control of 13 towns in the northern countryside that were held by the rebels.
Today, the townspeople fear an imminent attack by IS on the rest of the northern countryside. In the town, word has it that IS has been mobilizing its troops in the nearby areas of Ehtemalat and Hawar al-Nahr, while Marea’s markets are suffering from economic stagnation, as they become almost entirely empty once the sun goes down.
“We received information about an IS military buildup, including tanks and vehicles equipped with machine guns in nearby towns on the demarcation line with us,” Abu Mahmoud told Al-Monitor.
Read more: ▻http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/04/syria-aleppo-rebels-is-marea-hawar-killis-attacks.html#ixzz3XrCbnMFT