The Idlib Governorate clashes ( January – March 2017 ) were military confrontations between Syrian rebel factions led by Ahrar al-Sham and their allies on one side and the al-Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat Fatah al-Sham ( later as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham ) and their allies on the other . After 7 February , the clashes also included Jund al-Aqsa as a third belligerent , which had re-branded itself as '' Liwa al-Aqsa '' and was attacking the other combatants . The battles were fought in the Idlib Governorate and the western countryside of the Aleppo Governorate . The Khan Shaykhun chemical attack took place on 4 April 2017 , on the town of Khan Shaykhun , then under the control of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham ( HTS ) . The town was struck by an airstrike by government forces , which was followed by massive civilian chemical poisoning . The release of a toxic gas , which included sarin , or a similar substance , killed at least 74 people and injured more than 557 , according to the Idlib health authority . The attack was the deadliest use of chemical weapons in the Syrian civil war since the Ghouta chemical attack in 2013 . The United Nations , the governments of the United States , United Kingdom , Turkey , Saudi Arabia , France , and Israel , as well as Human Rights Watch have attributed the attack to the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad . The Assad government denied using any chemical weapons in the air strike . The Idlib Governorate clashes ( July 2017 ) were a series of military confrontations between Ahrar al-Sham and Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham . During the clashes , Tahrir al-Sham attempted to capture the Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing . As a result of the clashes , HTS took control of Idlib city , the border crossing , and most of the areas along the Turkish border in the Idlib Province . Clashes resumed in July 2017 . In September 2017 , the Syrian government and its Russian allies launched a new aerial campaign against rebel-held towns in Idlib , with multiple casualties . A Turkish military operation in Idlib Governorate took place in October/November 2017
Ghouta chemical attack
Ghouta chemical attack
Idlib Governorate