The Battle of al-Bab was a battle for the city of al-Bab in the Aleppo Governorate that included a military offensive launched by Syrian rebel groups (including groups affiliated with the Free Syrian Army) and the Turkish Armed Forces north of al-Bab, a separate Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) offensive east and west of the city, and another Syrian Army offensive from the south of the city. The northern Turkish-led forces intended to capture al-Bab from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), as part of the Turkish military intervention in Syria. By the end of the battle, the Turkish-led forces had captured al-Bab, Qabasin, and Bizaah, while the Syrian Army captured Tadef and other areas further south, with the SDF making gains further to the east and the west.
The battle was concurrent with the other anti-ISIL operations, including the Raqqa campaign launched by the SDF, the Battle of Mosul launched by the Iraqi forces, and the Palmyra offensive, which was successfully conducted by ISIL against Syrian government forces. It was also claimed by Kurds to be the result of an "Aleppo for al-Bab" agreement between the Syrian government and Turkey, with Turkey withdrawing its support to rebels in Aleppo in exchange to laisser-faire up to al-Bab, thus cutting short the possibility of an East-West Kurdish corridor.
Background
After the western al-Bab offensive during the previous month, the rebels moved their focus from the western countryside of al-Bab so to avoid confrontation with the Syrian Democratic Forces, and launched an assault against the Islamic State north of al-Bab.
The offensive
Northern rebel attack repelled
Between 6 and 14 November 2016, the rebels captured 36 villages, putting them within two kilometers of al-Bab. Meanwhile, the Syrian Democratic Forces captured seven villages east of al-Bab in an attempt to besiege the town of Arima.
On 14 November, rebel forces managed to enter the northern outskirts of al-Bab, but were facing stiff resistance, with fighting raging at a livestock market two kilometers north of the town. By this point, al-Bab was surrounded from the north and northwest, with the only retreat route remaining for ISIL to the southeast towards Raqqa, through the ISIL-held town of Dayr Hafir. In the evening, the rebels established fire control over the Jafirah Roundabout and seized several adjacent buildings in the northern part of al-Bab, leaving them in control of less than 5 percent of the city. However, the next day, the rebels were forced to withdraw one kilometer to the north of al-Bab. Meanwhile, the rebels took control of the town of Qabasin, northeast of al-Bab.
The Turkish military stated on 18 November that the FSA had captured five villages in the Karadağ area of al-Rai district.
On 19 November, ISIL recaptured Qabasin, as well as one nearby village. This marked the fourth time the town had changed hands in the previous four days. On 20 November, the rebels launched two counter-attacks against Qabasin, with both being repelled. The next day, the rebels redirected their assault from al-Bab to the Kurdish-held village of Sheikh Nassir, managing to seize the village in the early morning hours, but losing it in an SDF counter-attack in the afternoon. Between 22 and 23 November, Qabasin changed hands two more times, ultimately remaining under ISIL control.
Western and eastern encirclement of al-Bab
On 23 November, the SDF captured Arima. In response, Turkish artillery shelled the SDF-held villages in the area.