page_title: Northern Aleppo offensive (February 2016)
section_title: SDF push north, government push south and Turkish shelling
hierarchical_section_title: Northern Aleppo offensive (February 2016) / Offensive / SDF push north, government push south and Turkish shelling
caption_attribution_description: English: A simplified map of Kurdish advancements concurrent with the 7th Aleppo offensive. Created in gimp 2.8. Influenced by many maps from creators: MrPenguin20, PetoLucem, Edmaps Syria, and so on.
context_page_description: The Northern Aleppo offensive (February 2016) refers to a military operation launched northwest of Aleppo in early February 2016 by the Syrian Arab Army and its allies. The offensive successfully broke the three-year Siege of Nubl and Al-Zahraa, effectively cutting off the main supply route of the Syrian rebels from Turkey.
context_section_description: Late on 11 February, according to several reports, the SDF reached the western outskirts of Azaz, with clashes taking place at the national hospital and the Al Shat checkpoint, 2 kilometers from the city. However, the SDF denied they had initiated an assault on Azaz. The next morning, government troops took control of Duhrat Al-Qur'ah and Duhrat Al-Qundilah hills, near Tannurah, following their second assault on the area during the week. They then seized the Tannourah Quarries and by the evening the northern part of Tannourah itself. This advance brought the military back to Mount Simeon for the first time after three and a half years. Elsewhere, the SDF advanced near Kafr Antoan and allegedly seized the Al Shat checkpoint, near Azaz.
  On 13 February, the Army fully secured Tannourah, advancing towards Anadan, while 20–46 air strikes hit Tell Rifaat. To the north, Turkish artillery shelled SDF forces at the recently captured Menagh air base and a village continuously for three hours, after the SDF came within 500 meters of Azaz. Several Twitter posts reported this was in support of a rebel counter-attack, which was eventually repelled. A Turkish official claimed the shelling was in response to YPG shelling of Turkish border military outposts, while Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu demanded that the SDF withdraw from all recently captured territory. The SDF stated they would not retreat and, despite the Turkish shelling, launched a two-pronged attack on Tell Rifaat. They captured the village of Ayn Daqnah, on the road between Tell Rifaat and Azaz, and advanced to the western outskirts of Tell Rifaat.
  On 14 February, the Turkish military shelled Kurdish forces for a second day, while government troops made attempts to advance from Tannurah to Anadan. During the day, 350 rebel fighters crossed into Syria from Turkey to reinforce Tell Rifaat. They entered via the Atamah military border crossing and with the approval of Turkish authorities after they had earlier crossed into Turkey from Syria's Idlib governorate. Late that evening, SDF forces entered the western and northern neighborhoods of Tell Rifaat and reached the train station where clashes took place, after which they took control of the station, leaving them in control of most of the town (70 percent) by morning. The relative ease with which the SDF broke through into Tell Rifaat was due to no rebel defense lines being built on the western side of the town. The SDF also captured Kafr Kashir, after cutting the road between it and Azaz, leaving those in Azaz in fear of an imminent SDF attack on the town. The SDF also made attempts to advance towards the Kaljibrin area, moving closer to ISIS-controlled territory.
  On 15 February, government forces withdrew from Kafr Naya, handing over control of the town to the SDF. The SDF also seized Kafr Naseh and fully cleared Tell Rifaat, while south of the town, government troops captured the villages of Misqan and Ahras. At this point, the SDF were 6 kilometers from ISIL territory. The Turkish Prime Minister vowed "We will not allow Azaz to fall" and warned the SDF not to move east of Afrin or west of the Euphrates (into ISIL territory), as Turkish shelling continued for a third day, including hitting targets in Tell Rifaat. U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called on the Turkish Prime Minister to "de-escalate" and "cease artillery strikes on Kurds". The call was received with "astonishment" by Turkish officials.
  On 16 February, it was reported rebel forces agreed to withdraw from Mare' (on the frontline with ISIL), thus leaving it to the SDF. However, the rebels rejected this. In addition, there was speculation the Army would hand over Ahras to the SDF so to ease tensions and avoid potential future clashes. Later that day, the SDF captured Sheikh Isa, near Mare'. Meanwhile, Turkey continued artillery strikes against the SDF.
caption: Map of the Kurdish advancements during the offensive
exif: {}