NDF, Russia, Syria, Syrian Arab Army

Syria in the Last 24 Hours: Army Destroys al-Nusra Positions in Hama and Idleb, Closes in on Daesh in Sweida

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Army destroys al-Nusra positions in Hama and Idleb, closes in on Daesh in Sweida

17 August، 2018
Provinces, SANA

Units of Syrian Arab Army carried out intensive strikes on terrorists’ gatherings in the northern countryside of Hama and the southern countryside of Idleb, inflicting heavy losses upon terrorists’ ranks and equipment.

SANA’s reporter in Hama said that army’s artillery bombarded fortified positions of the so called “Jaish al-Ezza” in the area surrounding Maarkaba in the northern countryside of Hama province, killing scores of terrorists and destroying their sites.

The reporter added that the army’s raids also targeted terrorist groups affiliated to Jabhat al-Nusra on the outskirts of Um al-Khalakhil, Tal Mari, al-Khwin, Tal al-Sheeh towns and a number of villages along the southeastern administrative border of Idleb where they were enhancing their sites through digging trenches, building barriers and planting IEDs.

A number of terrorists’ fortified positions were destroyed due to the raids in addition to killing and injuring of many terrorists.

Meanwhile in Sweida province, Syrian Arab Army units continued to close in on Daesh (ISIS) terrorists in al-Safa hills area in the eastern badiya (desert) of Sweida, destroying their hideouts and inflicting heavy losses upon them.

SANA’s war correspondent said an army unit, with the backing of supporting forces, continued operations in the areas al-Rahba, Tal al-Ghanem, Oum Marzakh, and Qabr al-Sheikh Hussein in the direction of al-Safa hills, closing in on the remaining Daesh terrorists, destroying their hideouts and restricting their movement.

The correspondent said the army’s artillery and air force targeted with concentrated and precise fire the hideouts of Daesh in the hills, destroying their fortified positions and eliminating many of them.

He also said that army units engaged in violent clashes with Daesh terrorists in the surroundings of Qabr al-Sheikh Hussein, killing and injuring a number of terrorists.

Army Imposes Full Control over Quneitra Province

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Damascus army seized full control of Quneitra by entering the terrorists’ last strongholds in the province.

The Syrian army troops were deployed in the villages of Bariqah, Be’er al-Ajam and al-Qahtaniyah in Western Quneitra on Thursday in line with the peace agreement with the militant groups in Dara’a and Quneitra.

Meantime, the Syrian army continued its military advances in other parts of Syria over past 24 hours.

Tens of terrorists were killed and dozens more were injured during the Syrian army’s operations in provinces across Syria.

Quneitra

The Syrian army imposed full control of Quneitra province by entering the terrorists’ last strongholds after a peace agreement with the militant groups.

The army forces deployed in the villages of Bariqah, Be’er al-Ajam and al-Qahtaniyah in Western Quneitra (the regions under government control before the start of war in 2011) on Thursday in line with the peace agreement with the militant groups in Dara’a and Quneitra.

Also, the army authorities started granting amnesty to the militants who have remained in these regions.

Meantime, the Syrian army recaptured the last terrorist positions in Quneitra, stretching control on the entire parts of the province.

Hundreds of residents of newly-liberated regions returned to their homes after the army restored security to the three villages.

Hama-Idlib

The Syrian army launched heavy attacks on Tahrir al-Sham Hay’at (the Levant Liberation Board or the Al-Nusra Front) positions in Northern Hama and Southern Idlib on Thursday, killing a number of terrorists.

The army forces targeted Tahrir al-Sham and other terrorist groups’ moves and key bases in areas near the town of al-Latamineh in Northern Hama, killing and wounding a number of them and destroying their weapons.

They also smashed one of the important positions of Tahrir al-Sham in the town of al-Khowin in Southern Idlib, killing all the militants inside, including two of their ringleaders named Rezwan Salih and Abdolatif Khalid al-Qadour.

Meantime, the army’s artillery units attacked a large gathering of Tahrir al-Sham in areas near the town of Saraqib in Southern Idlib, destroying several military vehicles and killing and injuring a large number of terrorists.

Also, the Syrian army attacked militants’ positions and moves in the town of Sakik in Southern Idlib, killing and wounding several terrorists.

Aleppo

The Kurdish forces killed and wounded over 30 Ankara-affiliated militants during military operations against the Turkish army in Afrin.

The Kurdish-language Hawar news website quoted the Kurdish units as saying on Thursday that they had detonated two roadside bombs on the way of a convoy of the Turkish army and Ferqat al-Hamzeh terrorist group in Trendeh road.

They added that 10 Turkish army forces and affiliated militants were killed and over 20 others were injured in the operations.

After the attack, the reconnaissance drones of the Turkish army flew over the region for 6 hours.

Afrin is still the scene of clashes between the Kurdish forces and the Turkish army despite being occupied for several months by Ankara.

Homs

The Syrian refugees are afraid of returning to the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria’s Homs province as long as the US forces are stationed nearby in at-Tanf as well as some ISIL terrorists in the neighboring desert, a local official said.

“Few people have returned – only 200 families. People are worried, they are afraid of returning to Palmyra, as well as to Sukhnah, because they are close to the US base at al-Tanf. There are US troops there, as well as several ISIL units, which are wandering in the desert,” Governor-General of Homs province Talal Barazi said on Thursday.

He added that Syrians would feel secure only once the ISIL is eliminated, and the US servicemen leave al-Tanf.

Meantime, al-Barazi said that over 650 people who refused to surrender arms during the reconciliation process in Homs Province and left for Idlib have returned to the province to peaceful life, Governor Tal al-Barazi told reporters on Wednesday.

He said that during the reconciliation process administered by the Russian Center for Reconciliation of the Warring Parties, 80% of the population in al-Rastan, al-Dar al-Kabirah, Taldau, al-Ghantu, Tell-Bisa and Houla stayed, while 20% refused to surrender arms and were taken to Idlib.

Excerpt: Briefing by Russian Centre for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in Syria (August 17, 2018)

Former insurgents in southwest of the Syrian Arab Republic surrendered a self-propelled artillery mount, nine pickups (five of them with large-calibre machine guns), small arms, as well as a 800kg of ammunition of various types and calibers over the past day.

Despite the ceasefire regime being established throughout the country, there are still cases of ceasefire regime violation by illegal armed formations in the Idlib de-escalation zone. Over the past day there have been shelling attacks against Qara-Jages, Jubb-al0Zarur (2), Qastal-al-Borj, Bsharfa, Qellaz, Ikko (2), Ein-al-Qantara, Barisha, Jebb-al-Zarur, Muqattal, Latakia province, Maqanis-al-Duwayri (3), Hara (2) Tayl-al-Haleb, Haleb al-Jadid (2), al-Zahta (2) districts of Aleppo city, and positions of government troops in Zalaqiyat and Tall-al-Maqtaa, Hama province.

The Russian Centre for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides urges leaders of illegal armed formations operating in the Idlib de-escalation zone to cease hostilities and move towards peaceful settlement of the situation in areas they occupy.

Iraqi Forces Launch Major Operation in Syria to Eliminate ISIL

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Iraqi military announced that they had launched airstrikes on ISIL in Syrian territory amid Damascus’ efforts to eliminate the last pockets of the terrorist group.

“Fulfilling the orders of the commander-in-chief of the (Iraqi) Armed Forces … Iraqi F-16 jets successfully carried out an airstrike on the Syrian territory,” the statement said, as quoted by the Al-Sumaria broadcaster.

As the Iraqi military reported Thursday, the country’s jets destroyed an ISIL “operations room” in Syria, killing several fighters.

“According to intelligence, those terrorists who were killed were planning criminal operations using suicide vests and intended to target civilians in the next few days inside Iraq,” the military said in a statement.

According to a recently released UN report, approximately 30,000 ISIL members are operating in Iraq and Syria despite having lost the overwhelming majority of the territory they occupied over the past few years. A lot of them are believed to be in hiding or keeping an otherwise low profile.

The report, however, has failed to mention the presence of al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria, who have been fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad for years.

Iraq has been carrying airstrikes against ISIL’s positions in Syria with the authorization of the Syrian government. Meanwhile, Syrian government military forces are continuing their offensive against the remaining terrorists in Syria.

Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation

About half a million civilians return home in Deir Ezzor amid accelerated rehabilitation efforts

17 August، 2018
Deir Ezzor, SANA

Since the early hours after breaking the siege imposed by Daesh (ISIS) terrorist organization on the city of Deir Ezzor in early September last year, the government in cooperation with civil society organizations and professional associations have begun working to restore life to the city and its countryside after years of terrorism.

After the Syrian Arab Army restored security to the majority of the countryside of the province and secured thousands of kilometers of main roads to other provinces, the first sector that was rehabilitated in the province was the public and private transport sector as demanded by the people of Deir Ezzor to return to their homes in the liberated neighborhoods of the city and the countryside.

The number of citizens who returned to their homes in the province reached 489,531 citizens since the beginning of 2018, putting the total number of the residents at up to 1,037,037 inhabitants according to the latest statistics of Deir Ezzor governorate.

The accelerated return of citizens to their towns has increased due to the efforts of the army units in combing the cities, towns and villages to remove the remnants of the terrorists in order to preserve the lives of civilians in addition to activating the work of police units, civil affairs, banks, post offices, fire brigades and municipal councils in parallel with the start of reconstruction workshops to remove the debris, open the streets and repair infrastructure, including water and electricity.

In the health sector, Director of the Health Department at Deir Ezzor Abdul Najem al-Obeid said that 26 health centers and two medical points were opened, in addition to al-Assad, al-Furat, the Children and Maternity hospitals which are providing health services to citizens.

He added that the health sector in the province is supplied with equipment, devices, medicines, ambulances and mobile clinics.

The food, which was rare under a siege imposed by Daesh on tens of thousands of people in the city of Deir Ezzor for almost three years, was secured a few days after the breaking the siege through the convoys of the Syrian Trade Company. Prices fell sharply and returned to the normal level.

The various institutions and service departments are working to complete the rehabilitation of the infrastructure of various sectors in Deir Ezzor within the context of an integrated work program implemented by the government to restore all basic services to the province, in order to facilitate the return of all displaced families to their homes.

Aid distributed among locals in Bosra al-Cham and Zaizoun town, Daraa

17 August، 2018
Daraa, SANA

The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) branch in Daraa on Thursday delivered a convoy of aid to Bosra al-Cham and Zaizoun town in Daraa countryside.
Head of the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) branch in Daraa, Ahmad al-Masalmeh said that the aid is provided by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), including relief materials, medical equipment, health baskets and food items.

In a relevant context, staff of SARC branch in Daraa distributed aid among 400 families in Zaizoun town in Daraa western countryside , including 400 health baskets , canned food and bottled water.

Civilians Kidnapped by Turkish Army in Afrin

TEHRAN (FNA)- Dozens of civilians have been abducted by the Turkish army and its affiliated militants in Afrin in the past two days as Ankara continues occupation of the region, local sources said.

The Kurdish-language Hawar news quoted local sources in Afrin in Northern Aleppo as saying on Thursday that the Turkish army and militants supported by Ankara have kidnapped over 20 residents of Afrin, including women and the elderly, in Rajou and Shara regions in the past two days.

They added that the kidnapped people have been taken to unknown places, noting that the terrorists receive huge amounts of money up to 15mln lira to free them.

The sources said that the Ankara-backed militants still continue plundering civilian properties, adding that they have so far stolen 300 bulldozers, 220 vehicles and thousands of motorcycles of Afrin residents.

The report said the Turkish army forces and Ahrar al-Sharqiyeh terrorists have also set fire to the farms in the village of Khalalka in Bolboleh region.

In a relevant development in Afrin earlier today, Hawar news quoted the Kurdish units as saying that they had detonated two roadside bombs on the way of a convoy of the Turkish army and Ferqat al-Hamzeh terrorist group in Trendeh road.

They added that 10 Turkish army forces and affiliated militants were killed and over 20 others were injured in the operations.

After the attack, the reconnaissance drones of the Turkish army flew over the region for 6 hours.

Afrin is still the scene of clashes between the Kurdish forces and the Turkish army despite being occupied for several months by Ankara.