On 6 December 2024, the United States–backed Syrian Free Army, with support from Suqour al-Sham, launched an offensive from the Al-Tanf "deconfliction zone" on the ancient city of Palmyra in the eastern area of the Homs Governorate. The United States reportedly gave logistical support to the opposition groups. The offensive came following setbacks by the government of Bashar al-Assad on other fronts, especially after the northwestern offensive by Tahrir al-Sham.
The Syrian Free Army (SFA) took control of Palmyra on 7 December after clashing with regime forces before going in the direction of Damascus.
Background
The SFA was told by the US Special Forces based at Al-Tanf to prepare for a coming offensive. The SFA's ranks were bolstered in October 2024 by various units that had expanded the group from 800 to around 3,000 fighters, including a unit that had been trained in Jordan by British forces to hunt down members of ISIS.
The Syrian Arab Army withdrew from the nearby Tiyas Air Base.
Offensive
The offensive was led by Abdulrazzaq Abu Khatib of Suqour al-Sham, whose group, in addition to Hezbollah, took the most casualties of the battle.
Al-Antri faced his former "tank unit" during the battle and told his men to fire warning shots.
Aftermath
The groups captured Damascus the following day.
As of mid-December, ISIS fighters were still on the outskirts of the city. Abu Khatib anticipated an offensive to start in January to flush them out.
The SFA has established checkpoints between Palmyra and Al-Tanf, though the group is dealing with a large increase in the amount of area it controls.