Syrian army captures key town near Lebanon

The Syrian army has captured a key town near the Lebanese border from foreign-sponsored militants fighting against the government.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies heavily on a network of spies working for the foreign-backed opposition, said on Tuesday that government forces took full control of the strategic Damascus-Homs highway after seizing most of the town of Nabak in the Qalamoun region.

The Syrian army has been fighting against the militants for several weeks to secure the Qalamoun region, north of Damascus.

The army has recently conducted successful clean-up operations across the country, inflicting heavy losses on the militants.

A recent British defense study showed that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, are fighting in Syria against the government and people.

The extracts of the study by defense consultancy IHS Jane’s were published on September 16.

IHS Jane’s estimates that some 10,000 militants are fighting for groups affiliated with al-Qaeda such as al-Nusra Front and the rest fight for different militant groups.

The analysis also said that a large number of extremists from foreign countries are also active in Syria.

Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since March 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies — especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey — are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.

According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and a total of 7.8 million of others displaced due to the violence.