Syria in Last 24 Hours:

Army Purges Terrorists from More Regions in Damascus Countryside

Rasa - The Syrian army continued its mop-up operations in the Western countryside of Damascus by purging terrorists from key regions.

News ID: 434922

Date: 23 November 2017 - 21:10

RNA - The army units also pushed back terrorists from the key areas and took back their positions while advancing further into Western Damascus.

The Syrian troops killed tens of terrorists and injured dozens more in fierce clashes over controlling of strategic regions. They also destroyed military equipment of the terrorists.

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

Damascus

The Syrian Army soldiers carried out a fresh assault in Western Damascus and imposed control over a command post of Jund al-Farouq Battalion on Tuesday, an Arab media outlet reported.

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily reported that the army men engaged in heavy fighting with terrorists near the village of Um Bateneh in Quneitra province and captured a command post of the militants of Jund al-Farouq Battalion at Damascus-Quneitra border.

In the meantime, the army's missile units shelled heavily terrorists' positions on the hills near the village of Kafr Hoor in Jabal (mount) al-Sheikh.

Meantime, an Arab media outlet reported on Tuesday that disunity is growing among the ISIL terrorists in the Yarmouk Refugee Camp and the small town of Hajar al-Aswad in the Southern part of Damascus province.

The Arabic-language al-Watan daily reported that Amer Sabri nom de guerre Abu Saleh Amer has been appointed as ISIL's emir in Southern Syria to rule over vast parts of the Yarmouk Palestinian Refugee Camp and the town of Hajar al-Aswad.

The daily quoted local sources as saying that Sabri's command in Yarmouk came after growing disunity among terrorists as ISIL has now two different organizations in Southern Damascus, adding that one of the organizations in under the command of Abu Hashem al-Khabouri deployed in Hajar al-Aswad South of Yarmouk, whose fighters are mainly from Hajar al-Aswad.

The second organization includes Palestinians of the Yarmouk Camp and the residents of settlements in Damascus countryside.

Deir Ezzur

The Syrian Army troops are standing on alert to drive back any possible counterattack by the ISIL terrorists on the town of Albu Kamal in Southeastern Deir Ezzur after fortifying their positions, military sources confirmed on Tuesday.

The sources said that the entire Syria-Iraq borderline in the Southern region around al-Qa'em border-crossing has come under the control of Iraqi and Syrian government forces after liberation of the key town of Albu Kamal.

The sources added that the Syrian army started fortifying its positions across the town of Albu Kamal less than 24 hours after its liberation.

They further said that clashes are underway between the army and ISIL in Albu Kamal's surrounding areas.

Field sources confirmed on Monday that the Syrian Army troops captured another ISIL-held region in Eastern Deir Ezzur, killing tens of terrorists.

The sources said that the army men drove ISIL out of the small town of al-Kashmah (Tishrin) after they captured the town of al-Salehiyeh in Eastern Deir Ezzur.

Tens of ISIL terrorists were killed and several bomb-laden suicide vehicles of them were destroyed in the attack.

Homs

The Syrian Army troops, backed up by the country's Air Force, targeted the strongholds of ISIL and other terrorist groups in Eastern and Northern Homs on Tuesday.

The Army men engaged in fierce clashes with ISIL in Humeimeh region in Southeastern Homs.

Also, the army aircraft bombed heavily ISIL's strongholds between Humeimeh and the T2 Oil Pumping Station, killing and wounding a number of terrorists.

In the meantime, the army's artillery units targeted terrorists' positions in the villages of al-Qantu, Taldu and al-Tayebeh Qarbi in Northern Homs in response to the terrorists' artillery and missile attacks and violation of de-escalation zone agreement.

The army's artillery attack on terrorists extended to other militant-held region in areas surrounding al-Houlah in Northern and Northwestern Homs, destroying the entire positions of the militants.

Hama

The ISIL engaged in heavy fighting with the Al-Nusra Front (Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at or the Levant Liberation Board) and managed to capture four villages in Northeastern Hama, dissident-affiliated websites reported on Tuesday.

The websites reported that ISIL clashed with Al-Nusra in al-Sa'an region in Northeastern Hama and pushed them back from the villages of Talihan, Ma'asaran, Abu Hariq and Abu al-Kasour.

Relevant reports said last month that the Al-Nusra hit ISIL's defense lines and pushed the rival terrorists back from the villages of Abu Meel and Marijab in Northeastern Hama.

A number of gunmen from both warring sides, including ISIL Commander Abu Hamza Mesri, were killed in the clashes.

847/940