Kafra ( ar, كفرة, Kafrah) is a small town in northern
Aleppo Governorate
Aleppo Governorate ( ar, محافظة حلب / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ḥalab'' / ) is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,867,000 (2011 Est.), almost 23% of t ...
, northwestern Syria. Located some north of the city of
Aleppo and east of
Azaz, it administratively belongs to
Nahiya Sawran in
Azaz District. Nearby localities include
Jarez to the west,
Kaljibrin
Kaljibrin ( ar, كلجبرين) is a town in northern Syria, administratively part of the A'zaz District of Aleppo Governorate, located northeast of Aleppo. Nearby localities include Menagh to the west, Kafr Kalbin and A'zaz to the northwest, ...
to the southwest, and
Sawran to the east. In the 2004 census, Kafra had a population of 2,859.
Syrian Civil War
During the
Syrian Civil War Kafra proved a strategic location, due to its proximity to the city of
Azaz in the west, and towns of
Suran and
Ihtaymilat in the east.
ISIL
An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...
forces took Kafra on 2 December 2015 in a planned offensive on Azaz, which was under the control of
FSA forces. However, this offensive never materialised as
SDF forces
captured the vital dam at Tishrin in the Aleppo Governorate, thereby jeopardising ISIL's control of the city of
Manbij
Manbij ( ar, مَنْبِج, Manbiǧ, ku, مەنبج, Minbic, tr, Münbiç, Menbic, or Menbiç) is a city in the northeast of Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria, 30 kilometers (19 mi) west of the Euphrates. In the 2004 census by the Cen ...
. Despite their forces in the area becoming increasingly stretched, ISIL made numerous assaults on the FSA frontlines in front of Kafra. Although this resulted in the frontline changing numerous times over the next several months, ISIL gains always proved temporary, and Kafra would quickly return to its position as a frontline town. In a major offensive by FSA forces, Kafra, along with numerous other towns,
were captured by FSA forces on 10 October 2016. A large scale
mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...
operation by ISIL forces prior to this offensive hampered FSA progress in the area.
ISIL forces ultimately were forced to withdraw from much of the Aleppo Governorate, retreating towards
Al-Bab.
References
Populated places in Azaz District
Towns in Aleppo Governorate
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