ISIS
terrorists seized the ancient city of Palmyra from Syrian government
forces. The terrorist group also took control of Biyarat, Dawah and
Hayyan oil facility west of Palmyra after a series of clashes with the
Syrian army and the National Defense Forces (NDF). Terrorists also
attacked the Qadri farms and shelled government forces in the outskirts
of the Tayfor Airbase. Heavy clashes were also at the Tiyas village near
the Tayfor Airbase, but the Syrian army repelled ISIS attacks there.
ISIS
was able to achieve all these gains despite massive airstrikes by the
Syrian Air Force and the Russian Aerospace Forces. Only Russian
warplanes and helicopters have delivered over 150 airstrikes on ISIS
terrorists near Palmyra since Saturday. On Saturday, the Russian Defense
Ministry reported that eleven battle tanks and infantry fighting
vehicles, 31 cars with heavy machineguns, and over 300 militants were
destroyed.

Government forces are now
regrouping and deploying reinforcements in the area west of Palmyra and
conducting a pre-emptive shelling of ISIS units before the
counter-attack.
ISIS has a 4,000-strong
attack force in the area and is readying to continue the advance. In
Palmyra it has seized a high number of military equipment from
government forces and Russian military advisers.
The
breakthrough and rapid advancement of the ISIS took place due to
fundamental mistakes of commanders of units of the Syrian Army and the
NDF, deployed in the Palmyra area, who just let their guard down. They
did not pay due attention to fortification activities, processes of
equipping positions with engineering and combat hardware, as well as
were carelessness during tactical reconnaissance and assessment of the
forces and means of attackers. As a result, commanders did not report
the all necessary information to the higher command in Damascus on time,
thereby, deluding it. However, this fact does not remove the
responsibility from the central command and the Russian assist and
advise mission.
There are several reasons, which explain the emergence of so many mistakes at one and the same time:

• Wrong informing from outlying areas;
• Negligence in reconnaissance;
• Focusing of the attention on the military operation in the city of Aleppo;
• Unexpected
  redeployment of new ISIS units from Iraq to Syria, as well as
  involvement of the most experienced ISIS commanders of the senior and
  middle levels in the offensive;
• Unexpected large number of suicide bombers, involved in the operation.

Meanwhile,
clashes continued in the city of Aleppo where government forces renewed
the military operation amid the collapsing ceasefire efforts by Russia.
The army its allies liberated Al-Asilah, Ma`adi and Bab al Maqam. Heavy
clashes also took place in Sheikh Saeed. However, December 12 morning,
government forces were in the control of the area.

SouthFront