Syria in Last 24 Hours:

Army Preparing for Large-Scale Military Operation in Hama Province

Rasa - The Syrian army is preparing itself for massive military operations in Hama province, military sources revealed.

News ID: 428928

Date: 15 April 2017 - 21:58

RNA - The army units warded off militants' attacks on the town of Ma'ardes in Northern Hama, field sources said.

The Syrian army also inflicted heavy losses on the terrorist groups in other key regions across Syria.

Hama

The Syrian Army troops were preparing to launch massive attack on terrorists' defense lines in two important towns in Northern Hama after they fended off militants' attacks on the town of Ma’ardes on Thursday, field sources said on Friday.

The sources said that the army troops, led by the Tiger Forces and 40th Brigade of the 4th Mechanized Division, are making their final preparations to storm the key towns of Souran and Taybat Al-Imam.

They added that with Ma’ardes fully secured, the army has moved in position to strike Souran from several directions, while the Russian and Syrian fighter jets bombed heavily positions of Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at (the Levant Liberation Board also known as the Al-Nusra Front) at Taybat Al-Imam.

Idlib

Over 5,000 civilians in Fua'a and Kafraya started leaving the two besieged towns for government-controlled regions, Arab media outlets reported.

The Arabic language al-Mayadeen News Agency reported that more than 5,000 residents of Fua'a and Kafraya left their towns today to travel on over 75 buses en route to government-controlled territories.

The residents of Fua'a and Kafraya were initially stopped from leaving their towns after the terrorists of Faylaq Al-Sham fired several mortar shells at their transport vehicles last night, the agency said.

Al-Mayadeen added that another batch of civilians is expected to leave Fua'a and Kafraya in the coming days, as the second phase of the agreement has commenced.

A convoy of buses and ambulances arrived in Fua'a and Kafraya in Idlib province on Thursday to transfer civilians and patients from the two towns which had been besieged by the terrorists for three years now.

The development came in line with an agreement between the Syrian army and the terrorist groups to transfer civilians from Fua'a and Kafraya in exchange for the militants' exit from Damascus province.

A sum of 99 buses and 20 ambulances of the Syrian Red Crescent Society entered Fua'a and Kafraya in Northern Idlib on Thursday morning to transfer the civilians from the two towns after three years.

Based on the agreement, 8,000 civilians are due to leave Fua'a and Kafraya and 3,800 militants along with their family members will be transferred from the towns of Zabadani, Madhaya, Baqin and al-Jabal al-Sharqi in the outskirts of Damascus.

Damascus

Hundreds of gunmen and their family members were evacuated from the towns of Madhaya and al-Zabadani to militant-held regions in Idlib province, local sources confirmed on Friday.

According to local activists in Damascus, more than 25 buses carrying hundreds of gunmen and their families left Madhaya and al-Zabadani this morning for militant-controlled regions in Idlib province after ambulances and aid trucks arrived last night to help the wounded and sick.

They added that the buses are currently heading towards an undisclosed location in Idlib province.

In return, over 5,000 civilians left the two besieged towns of Fua'a and Kafraya in Idlib for government-held territories.

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