Syria in Last 24 Hours: Army Inflicts Heavy Losses on Terrorists in Homs Province

The Turkish-backed militants in Aleppo province sustained heavy losses in tough battle with the Syrian army.

The Syrian army also continued its advances in other key provinces across Syria.

Aleppo

The Syrian Army troops and militants affiliated to the Turkish Army hit each other’s positions in Northeastern Aleppo, local sources confirmed on Monday.

The sources reported that the Syrian Army units and the Ankara-led Euphrates Shield forces reportedly exchanged gunfire near the town of al-Bab in Northeastern Aleppo.

Militants opened fire at the Syrian army troops South of Al-Bab, while Damascus forces responded with their own barrage of gunfire.

Neither side reported casualties regardless of the fierce exchanges.

Deir Ezzur

The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have moved towards the Syrian Army troops’ positions in regions close to the town of Albu Kamal, increasing the possibility of direct confrontation with the pro-government forces, a military source said Monday.

The SDF managed to decrease their distance to the army positions in the newly-freed town of Albu Kamal at the border with Iraq, the source said.

The source added that the SDF deployed near the army men’s positions at border with Iraq after imposing control over Halouni and al-Qarah regions.

Direct confrontation is growing more likely between the army troops and the SDF as the pro-government forces are carrying out mop-up operation in regions near Albu Kamal.

Idlib

The Syrian Army has sent a large number of forces and a large volume of military equipment to Hama and Aleppo provinces to kick off an imminent operation against terrorists in Southeastern Idlib, a field source confirmed on Monday.

The source said that the army has forwarded hundreds of fresh soldiers and more military hardware to Southern Aleppo and Northeastern Hama to storm terrorists’ defense lines in Southeastern Idlib and capture the strategic Abu al-Dhohour airbase amid eruption of infighting between two rival terrorist groups at the airbase.

The source added that the army men are planning to launch Idlib operation from two different flanks in Southern Aleppo and Northeastern Hama.

Military sources said earlier that the army troops were in final stages of military-logistic preparations to kick off a large-scale anti-terrorism operation in Idlib province from different directions amid the government forces’ advances in Hama and Aleppo.

The sources said that the army put a large number of its elite force on alert in Northeastern Hama and Southern Aleppo to kick off the final phase of an imminent operation to capture the strategic Abu al-Dhohour airbase.

The sources said that the first phase of the army operation would end after purging Northeastern Hama and Southern Aleppo of terrorists.

The sources further added that the army was not expected to face much resistance in its operation in Idlib as rifts were recently widened among terrorist groups in the region.

Meantime, terrorists engaged in fierce clashes with each other in Abu al-Dhohour airbase in Southeastern Idlib as the Syrian Army troops are preparing for a large-scale operation to enter Idlib and capture the base, an Arab media outlet reported on Monday.

The Arabic-language al-Watan online reported that members of the Islamic al-Turkistan party clashed with the rival terrorists of Ansar Turkistan in the Abu al-Dhohour airbase in Southeastern Idlib for the first time.

The al-Watan quoted sources close to the warring sides as saying that differences over how to lead the war against the army caused the infighting between the Islamic al-Turkistan party and Ansar Turkistan.

It added that the army troops have deployed only 17 km away from the airbase from its Eastern direction.

Al-Watan went on to say that al-Turkistani party has recently joined the Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay’at or the Levant Liberation Board), participating in battle against the army men close to the village of al-Mastariheh.

Damascus

The Al-Nusra Front has sent a large number of terrorists to Southwestern Damascus to face the rapid advances of the Syrian Army troops in the region, field sources said on Monday.

The sources said that the Al-Nusra has forwarded more fighters and military equipment to the battlefields in Beit Jinn region to slow down the army men advances.

In the meantime, the army’s artillery and missile units shelled heavily the Al-Nusra positions in Tal (hill) Bardayah in farms near Beit Jinn, the sources added.

Tal Bardayah is located in the Northern part of the Beit Jinn pocket and has been the Syrian Army’s primary objective for several days now.

The army soldiers, backed up by artillery and missile units and Air Force, have engaged in fierce clashes with terrorists in regions close to Beit Jinn and its surrounding farms.

The army’s control over Kafr Hoor and its surrounding hills, strategic hill overlooking Sahl Hineh, Kafr Hoof and Beit Tima has enabled the army to tighten noose on terrorists in Beit Jinn region and farms.