Damascus, December 1 (IANS). Security forces retaliated in northern rural areas of Hama province in central Syria. After fierce clashes, security forces managed to recapture key areas from rebel groups. This information was given by the government media and war monitor on Sunday.
According to Xinhua news agency, the Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement that Syrian army units strengthened their defense lines and successfully repelled attacks by terrorist organizations.
“Our armed forces managed to secure several areas – especially Qalaat al-Madiq and Mardas – after repelling the terrorists, dozens of terrorists were killed in the operation, while the rest fled,” the ministry said.
State Syrian television reported that nearly 1,000 militants from the terrorist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and its affiliates were killed in the military operation over the past three days.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, confirmed that government forces had dispatched a significant number of reinforcements in recent hours.
Since early Sunday morning, warplanes launched a series of airstrikes on areas around Mork, Khan Sheikhoun, Kafr Nabl, Hazrin and Tal Kokba in the northwestern Idlib province and northern Hama regions. These areas have recently been taken over by HTS.
According to the Observatory, intensified airstrikes have halted the advance of rebel groups in rural areas of Hama.
Earlier on Saturday, the terrorist group HTS and its allied opposition groups made advances in Hama in central Syria and captured several towns and villages in the northern part of the province.
–IANS
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