page_title: Siege of al-Fu'ah and Kafriya
section_title: 2015
hierarchical_section_title: Siege of al-Fu'ah and Kafriya / The siege / 2015
context_page_description: The Siege of al-Fu'ah and Kefriya was a siege of the towns of al-Fu'ah and Kafriya, towns with majority Shia populations and controlled by Syrian government forces in the Idlib Governorate, during the Syrian Civil War. The siege was initiated with a rebel assault on the capital of the province in March 2015, resulting in the capture of Idlib. On 18 July 2018, the besieged government forces reached an agreement with Tahrir al-Sham-led rebels to evacuate them and civilians from the two towns.
context_section_description: On 28 March 2015, after four days of fighting, rebels captured Idlib city and managed to besiege the towns of Kafriya and al‐Fu'ah. Thousands of civilians were trapped since. Army of Conquest and one of its main components, al-Nusra Front, imposed a full siege blocking all humanitarian supplies to the towns; several executions were reported to happen in Idlib province for people accused to smuggle goods into Kafriya and al‐Fu'ah 
  In July 2015, the Battle of Zabadani began, as Hezbollah and the Syrian Army launched an offensive against rebel-held Al-Zabadani, as part of the Qalamoun offensive (May–June 2015). The pro-government siege of Zabadani and the rebel siege of Kafriya and al-Fu'ah became linked in negotiations.
  On 2 August, the Army of Conquest announced it would continue its operations against the besieged enclave of Kafriya and al-Fu'ah. On 10 August, the rebels launched an assault on al-Fu'ah, after detonating a car bomb and tunnel bomb, and advanced towards it. A temporary ceasefire in Zabadani and the two Idlib towns was put in place after negotiations between Ahrar a-Sham rebels and an Iranian delegation in Turkey, but these collapsed in late August after the government refused the rebel demand to release 1,500 female detainees, according to Ahrar a-Sham.
  On 31 August, Army of Conquest rebels launched a powerful attack on the enclave and captured al-Suwaghiyah, forcing the government soldiers to retreat to Tal Khirbat. Opposition media reported that the village of Deir al-Zaghab, due south of Kafariya and southeast of al-Fuaa, had also been captured by rebels, but pro-government media said the pro-government forces had repelled an attack on the area. There were two days of protests in pro-government areas across Syria, including Sayeda Zainab, Homs and Latakia, calling on the government to save the civilians trapped in the siege, burning tires and blocking the Damascus International Airport road; the government blamed the demonstrations on "young anarchists".
  Between 3 September and 5 September, government sources reported that the rebels intensively shelled the enclave and launched a number of attacks on al-Fu'ah and Kafriya from Maarrat Misrin, al-Suwaghiyah and Idlib city. The attacks were repelled, with the Army reportedly destroying three armoured vehicles.
  On 18 September, the rebels launched a new attack on the enclave, firing almost 400 shells and rockets, while nine car bombs (including seven suicide bombers) were detonated at government positions. The clashes led to the death of at least 29 rebels and 21 government soldiers, as well as seven civilians. The SOHR reported that the rebels gained some ground, though Iranian media said National Defense Forces and Hezbollah were able to defend their positions. Ajnad al-Sham threatened on social media to shell Fu'ah and Kefriya with over 100 mortars a day. On 19 September, rebels advanced again in the vicinity of al-Fuah, capturing Tal Al-Khirbat and a number of checkpoints around it. On the other hand, the government troops repelled the rebels attack on the nearby village of Deir Al-Zughb. According to government claims, the rebels lost over 100 fighters, including 31 from foreign countries. The overall number of suicide bombers with VBIEDs that attacked al-Fou'aa and Kafraya in the battle of 18–19 September was estimated to be 26 VBIEDs. The attackers were: 11 Uyghurs, one Lebanese, 2 Saudis and 11 Syrians.
  On 20 September, a second cease-fire in al-Zabadani/Madaya and al-Fou'aa/Kafriya was implemented, where the rebels allowed humanitarian aid to the besieged civilians of al-Fou'aa and Kafriya. A violation of this cease-fire was reported the next day as the rebels resumed shelling the towns. Rebels again violated the cease-fire by shelling the towns at the end of the month, but the cease-fire held.
caption: Map showing the siege