PHOTO: A regime airstrike on Zabadani, northwest of Damascus

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Syria Feature: Civilians to Call Themselves “Heritage Sites and Monuments” To Get UN Protection

Reports on Tuesday indicated that Syria’s rebels are holding out in Zabadani, northwest of Damascus, despite being surrounded by a Hezbollah-regime offensive.

On Sunday, pro-Assad accounts proclaimed that the offensive had advanced rapidly and was only 200 meters from the center of the town, the first taken by the Free Syrian Army from the Assad regime in January 2012.

However, beyond photographs of some bodies which were supposedly slain rebels, the claims were not supported. Instead, pro-opposition accounts maintained that the offensive — while entering parts of Zabadani — has been repelled, with heavy losses suffered by Hezbollah and Assad troops. By Tuesday morning, the same pro-regime outlet that had proclaimed imminent victory was now admitting. “perilous combat and high amounts of casualties for both sides“.

Yesterday rebel sources asserted that a counter-attack had taken checkpoints near Zabadani, with at least two regime colonels killed. Despite a sustained assault by the Syrian air force, including barrel bombs, the ground offensive had not been able to advance.

State news agency SANA maintains this morning, “The army continued operations against terrorists in the city, advancing on many areas and establishing control over new blocks. A number of terrorists were killed in the process and a 50-meter tunnel was destroyed.”

Al-Masdar News has dropped its reference to “perilous combat” and proclaims again that the offensive is “rolling” and advanced “deep into the heart of al-Zabadani”.

An air raid rocks a building in the town:

A new dimension was added to the battle on Tuesday with allegations that the Lebanese army is supporting the Hezbollah-regime attacks, firing artillery and rockets on Zabadani from three locations inside Lebanon.

The Assad regime is hoping that Zabadani will be a victory — the first significant gain this year — in the face of a series of rebel advances from the northwest to the south of Syria. Success would bolster Hezbollah’s buffer zone along the Lebanese border, following gains in the Qalamoun region in a spring offensive.

Jabhat al-Nusra Abducts Free Syrian Army Member, Shuts Police Station

Activists in Kafranbel in northwest Syria say the Islamist faction has abducted Naser al-Salloum, a long-time member of the Free Syrian Army.

Al-Salloum was seized when Jabhat al-Nusra shut down the Kafranbel police office, administered by the Free Syrian Army, for an hour.

Belgium Brings Almost 250 Christians Out of Aleppo

Belgian officials have brought almost 250 Christians out of Aleppo, amid fears for their safety in the fighting in the divided city.

An activist group urged the Cabinet Secretary to take action. He then consulted Ministers, and the civilians were brought to the Belgian Embassy in Beirut before flying to Belgium.

Foreign Minister Didier Reynders said that Belgium has about 5,500 Syrian refugees.

Videos: Rebels Fighting in Offensive in West Aleppo

Rebels on the frontline in their offensive in western sections of Aleppo city:

The offensive, which began last week, has taken part of the al-Zahra district, notably the Military Research Center. However, it has faced resistance in attempts to enter the regime-held New Aleppo area.

See Syria Daily, July 7: Rebels Attack Again in Aleppo City

$500 Million US Train-and-Equip Program Working With Only 60 Rebels

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told a Congressional hearing on Tuesday that a $500 million US program to train and equip Syrian rebels, approved last autumn, has only worked with about 60 fighters.

US officials have proclaimed that the effort would counter the Islamic State in Syria, but it has been beset by bureaucratic delays and clashes over objectives. Rebel coalitions — and their supporters in Turkey and Saudi Arabia — have told Washington that the trained fighters must also be able to pursue the goal of defeating President Assad’s forces.

Training finally began in May in Jordan and Turkey after months of delays. The goal was to put 3,000 men on the battlefield by the end of 2015 and to train 5,000 in total.

“Given the poor numbers of recruited and trained Syrian fighters thus far, I am doubtful we can achieve our goal of training a few thousand this year,” said Senator John McCain, the chairman of the Armed Services Committee.

Carter insisted that the number of recruits would increase as the US learns how to accelerate vetting of fighters: “We are also refining our curriculum, expanding our outreach to the moderate opposition, and incorporating lessons learned from the first training class.”

Asked who will leave office first, President Obama — whose term ends January 2017 — or President Assad, Carter replied, ““Well, it — it’s certain that President Obama will leave.”

After a moment of cross-talk, the Defense Secretary pulled back a bit, “[But] I certainly hope it’s Assad.”

Islamic State Launches New Attack on Tiyas Airbase and T4 Pumping Station, East of Homs

The Islamic State has renewed attacks on an important regime airbase and oil facility east of Homs.

The militants attacked the Tiyas airbase and T4 pumping station on Tuesday morning, capturing at least two regime checkpoints.

A pro-Assad outlet maintains that the Syrian army and air force counter-attacked, “killing scores of enemy combatants” and recovering one of the checkpoints.

The Islamic State closed on Tiyas and T4 in May as it captured the historic city of Palmyra to the east, taking a series of oil and gas fields and installations along the way.

A military analyst has said that Tiyas is “Syria’s largest and most important airbase“, with many of the Assad regime’s fighter-bombers.

Meanwhile, State media and pro-Assad outlets claim that the Syrian military defeated the Islamic State in the village of al-Bayarat, 10 km (6 miles) west of Palmyra.