Syria in Last 24 Hours: Army Sends Fresh Reinforcement Forces to Damascus Countryside

The deployment took place with the aim of reinvigorating the combat and defense capabilities of the Syrian army in Eastern Ghouta in Damascus countryside.

Meantime, the Syrian army and popular forces continued their military advances in other parts of Syria, including Deir Ezzur and Homs, over past 24 hours.

Damascus

Military officials disclosed on Friday that the Syrian Army has forwarded a large number of fresh soldiers along with the National Defense Forces (NDF) with advanced military equipment to Eastern Ghouta to intensify attacks on terrorist groups in the region.

The sources confirmed that a convoy of reinforcements, comprised of both special forces, NDF popular fighters and regular infantry men that were originally deployed in Damascus city, have arrived in Eastern Damascus.

These reinforcements should give the army’s 5th Legion a big boost in Eastern Damascus, as they attempt to push Southeast towards the Iraqi border-crossing.

Also, the army troops launched a fresh round of anti-terrorism operations in Southeastern Damascus on Tuesday and managed to advance against the terrorists of the Free Syria Army (FSA) along the key highway that connects Damascus to the Iraqi capital of Baghdad.

The army soldiers stormed FSA’s defense lines along Damascus-Baghdad highway and took back control over al-Saba’a al-Bayar region and several more positions.

The army men continued their operation from al-Saba’a al-Bayar and managed to recapture Zaza checkpoint, while other units of the army targeted FSA’s concentration centers near the strategic al-Sabihiyeh mountain.

Deir Ezzur

The Syrian Army troops kicked off a fresh round of large-scale anti-ISIL operation to take full control over the regions along the road connecting Palmyra city in Eastern Homs to Deir Ezzur city that is under terrorists’ siege.

The army men, led by the 5th Legion and Tiger Forces, stormed the Talilah area East of Palmyra, inflicting heavy damage on ISIL militants defending the territory West of the strategic crossroad.

With their main line of defense fractured, the ISIL was forced to retreat from the Talilah area, paving the way for the Syrian Army units to press East towards the Talilah Crossroad and T-3 Pumping Station.

Meanwhile, along the Palmyra-Deir Ezzur Road, a unit from the 5th Legion attacked the ISIL’s positions West of the Arak Gas Fields; the battle is ongoing at the moment.

The first phase of the offensive will focus on imposing control over the road leading from Palmyra to the T-3 Pumping Station and the territory West of the ‘Arak Gas Fields; once completed, the Syrian Army will intensify their assault, as they make a big push towards Deir Ezzur from two different directions.

Raqqa

The predominately Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) will launch their final assault on the ISIL terrorists’ main bastion of Raqqa in early summer, a commander said on Friday.

“The attack on Raqqa will take place in the beginning of the summer,” SDF Commander Rojda Felat told AFP without giving a more precise date.

He was speaking in al-Tabaqa city, which the SDF captured from ISIL on Wednesday along with its nearby dam.

Homs

The Syrian Army’s artillery and missile units along with the country’s Air Force pounded ISIL’s positons and movements in Eastern Homs, inflicting major losses on the terrorists.

The artillery and missile units shelled heavily ISIL’s positions in the villages of al-Mosheirefeh al-Janoubiyeh, Habreh al-Qarbi, Habreh al-Sharqia, Rasm al-Tawil, Tala’a al-Sharqiyeh and Um Sahrij, destroying a number of military vehicles and killing a number of terrorists.

In the meantime, the army aircraft bombed heavily ISIL’s concentration centers in the region of Sabkhat al-Mouh, wheat silos of Palmyra city, al-Shoumeriyeh mountain and in surroundings of Jubb al-Jarrah, leaving a number of militants dead or wounded.

Reports said earlier on Friday that the army troops and popular forces continued to hit ISIL’s positions hard in Eastern Homs, taking fire control over key regions.

The army soldiers, the National Defense Forces (NDF) and the Lebanese Hezbollah fighters engaged in heavy clashes with ISIL and liberated several hilltops East of al-Shoumeriyeh mountain.

The Syrian pro-government forces, backed up by the Russian Air Force’s heavy airstrikes, broke through the ISIL’s defense lines near Rasm Hamideh, resulting in the capture of all hilltops overlooking the desert region.

As a result of the advance, the Syrian Armed Forces and Hezbollah now enjoy fire control over the Rasm Hamideh region.