Syria

Palmyra Castle Captured by Syrian Army, Allies

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Syrian government forces and Desert Falcons fighters gained control over a strategically important height near the ancient city of Palmyra (Tadmur) East of Homs province on Friday.

The Syrian Army and Desert Falcons on Friday won another battle in Eastern Homs after hours of fierce clashes with the ISIL Takfiri terrorists.

The Syrian soldiers and their allies have pushed back the Takfiri terrorists in the region near the ancient city of Palmyra, and captured the Qalaat Fakhr ad-Din al-Maani Castle, known as the “Palmyra Castle”.

The Syrian army soldiers and their allies have kept on marching on militant-held regions in Eastern Homs province in recent days to capture the strategic city of Palmyra which has been under the control of the ISIL since May 2015.

Government forces in cooperation with the National Defence Forces (NDF), Hezbollah fighters and Syrian and Russian air forces have purged the ISIL Takfiri terrorists from 110 square kilometers of lands near the ancient city of Palmyra (Tadmur) in the Eastern parts of Homs province in the past 48 hours.

Several units of the Syrian army and their allies entered Palmyra through its Western gate on Wednesday and are still battling to free the city. As more army units are advancing towards the city from other directions, several battlefield reports said ISIL terrorists have been escaping the city and retreating to Raqqa, some 50km to the East of Palmyra.

Earlier today, the Syrian army and its allies won control over a key hill near Palmyra.

“The Syrian army and NDF continued pounding ISIL positions near Palmyra, and established full control over Syriatel hill near Palmyra Castle,” an army source said a few hours ago.

Battlefield reports from Homs province said terrorists have sustained heavy casualties in the Syrian army and popular forces’ continued and large-scale operations against ISIL’s concentration centers on Friday.

Meantime, the Russian Defense Ministry said the country’s bombers hit 146 terrorist targets around Palmyra from March 20 to March 23, and killed more than 300 terrorists during the operations.

“From March 20 to March 23 Russian Air and Space Forces conducted 41 sorties around Palmyra, Homs province, hitting 146 military terrorist targets. Six command centers, 320 terrorists, five tanks, six artillery systems, two ammunition depots and 15 vehicles were destroyed,” defence ministry said.

The Syrian army soldiers and their allies have kept on marching on militant-held regions in Eastern Homs province in recent days to capture the strategic city of Palmyra which has been under the control of the ISIL since May 2015.

The pro-government forces imposed full control over the Western slopes of Jabal (Mount) Al-Tar after a violent battle with the ISIL terrorists near Palmyra on Thursday.

According to a military source in Homs province, the Syrian Army forces and Hezbollah fighters broke ISIL’s defense lines on the Western slopes of Jabal al-Tar, forcing them to retreat to the Eastern parts of the strategic mountain-top, West of Palmyra. In addition to the liberation of the Western slopes of Jabal Al-Tar, the Syrian Army and Hezbollah also captured a fuel station in the Southwestern suburbs of Palmyra.

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