Terrorists Suffer Heavy Losses South of Idlib City; SAA in Full Control of Al-Mastouma

The conglomerate of Islamist forces that comprise of Jaysh Al-Fatah launched a full-scale assault on the village of Al-Mastouma from three axes in order to break-through the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and National Defense Forces (NDF) frontline defenses south of Idlib City.

Despite the large presence of Jaysh Al-Fatah fighters, the latter was unable to infiltrate past the Brick Factory and the village of Faylan; instead, the SAA and NDF were able to reestablish full control over the Brick Factory and the surrounding hills that encompass this rural area in southern Idlib.

According to a military source, the SAA and NDF killed a large swath of Jaysh Al-Fatah fighters – estimates were as low as 50 and as high as 450 enemy combatants killed at Al-Mastouma; however, there is no confirmation.

The SAA’s elite Special Forces unit “Al-Qawat Al-Nimr” (Tiger Forces) has arrived in Idlib and participated in the repelling of Jaysh Al-Fatah at Al-Mastouma – the commander of the Tiger Forces, Colonel Suheil Al-Hassan, has yet to arrive.

The Syrian Interior Minister arrived at Ariha on Saturday in order to inspect the Syrian Armed Forces and their defenses before heading towards the temporary offices of Idlib’s Governor at Jisr Al-Shughour.