Idlib: Al-Nusra Front Losing Ground in the South; Syrian Army Downs a Drone

Twelve hours after capturing two villages in southwest Idlib, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and National Defense Forces (NDF) pounded the Al-Qaeda linked “Al-Nusra Front” (Jabhat Al-Nusra) at the village of Al-Aliyah, capturing it after a night filled with firefights in the Al-Zawiyah Mountains (Jabal Al-Zawiyah).

Despite the Islamic Front (Jabhat Al-Islamiyya) offensive at Fou’aa and Kafraya, the towns near Jisr Shughour have been poorly protected by the latter over the last few days; this has resulted in the SAA’s 11th Tank Division rapid success.

At Brouma in northern Idlib, the SAA downed a reconnaissance drone that belonged to the militants of the Al-Nusra Front; it was seen flying over the army’s positions on Thursday morning.

The Islamic Front – in cooperation with the Al-Nusra Front – carried out a number of attacks on the NDF’s positions at Fou’aa and Kafraya, as they attempted to infiltrate from the north – they were repelled after long duration.