 Nabopolassar was saved from likely destruction because yet another massive Assyrian rebellion broke out in Assyria proper, including the capital Nineveh, which forced the Assyrian king to turn back in order to quell the revolt.Nabopolassar took advantage of this situation, seizing the ancient city of Nippur in 619 BCE, a mainstay of pro-Assyrianism in Babylonia, and thus Babylonia as a whole.However, his position was still far from secure, and bitter fighting continued in the Babylonian heartlands from 620 to 615 BCE, with Assyrian forces encamped in Babylonia in an attempt to eject Nabopolassar.