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Syrian Rebels Turn to Guerrilla Tactics as Regime Forces Gain Battlefield Advantage
(Wall Street Journal) Raja Abdulrahim - Rebels fighting to overthrow Syrian President Assad say their survival depends on changing tactics and shifting to guerrilla warfare, as their territorial losses to the regime and its Russian and Iranian allies mount. The vastly outgunned rebels say they have turned to guerrilla tactics such as assassinations, ambushes and hit-and-run attacks in the battle for Aleppo. Forced to withdraw last week from the village of Ratyan in Aleppo province, 10 rebel fighters stayed behind, armed with AK-47s and PKC machine guns, according to Abdulfatah al-Hussein, a member of the rebel group Jaish al-Mujahideen. When Iranian, Afghan, Iraqi and Hizbullah fighters entered Ratyan, the rebels opened fire and killed dozens of them. Jennifer Cafarella, a research fellow at the Institute for the Study of War, noted, "The war is entering a new phase, thanks to the Russian air campaign and Iranian ground presence."