Furthermore, the SAA‘s Desert Hawks Brigade arrived to Aleppo city on Saturday. This specialized SAA unit arrived from the eastern Aleppo countryside after it was determined that the Islamic State was unlikely to gather another assault on the Kuweiris Airbase following a series of recent territorial setbacks for ISIS in Aleppo province.

The Desert Hawks Brigade is trained specifically in ambush tactics and desert warfare. Notably, this elite SAA unit led the charge to liberate Palmyra from the Islamic State little more than six months ago.