Syrian Army Retakes Full Control over Strategic Town of Al-Mleiha near Damascus

Syrian troops, following heavy clashes with foreign-backed militants to liberate the strategic town of al-Mleiha, won the battle and retook full control over the town and its outskirts, killing, wounding and arresting large numbers of rebels.
Syrian army, in a statement on Thursday, praised its brave soldiers, who in cooperation and coordination with local residents, pushed back the anti-government fighters from Mleiha from where insurgents had staged so many attacks on the country’s international airport, the State News Agency reported.

The statement went on to say that security and stability has been restored to al-Mleiha and the surrounding farms in the Eastern Ghouta area.

An army’s field commander underlined the importance of conquering al-Mleiha because it was considered as the main gateway to enter Damascus through Jaramana and the capital’s Southern areas.

He further added that al-Mleiha was the main gathering center of terrorists from outside Syria, with Saudi, Tunisian, Algerian, Qatari, Jordanian, Yemeni, and other countries nationalities.

The conflict in Syria started in March 2011, when sporadic pro-reform protests turned into a massive insurgency following the intervention of western and regional states.

The unrest, which took in terrorist groups from across Europe, the Middle-East and North Africa, has transpired as one of the bloodiest conflicts in recent history.

As the foreign-backed insurgency in Syria continues without an end in sight, the US government has boosted its political and military support to Takfiri extremists.

Washington has remained indifferent to warnings by Russia and other world powers about the consequences of arming militant groups.