Syrian Army Advancing in Latakia against Al Qaeda, Russian Air Support

By South Front
Global Research, September 13, 2016
South Front 12 September 2016
Region:
Theme:
In-depth Report:

On September 9, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), the Desert Hawks Brigade, the Syrian Marines and and Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) started a full-scale advance on Jabhat Fateh Al-Sham (formerly Jabhat Al Nusra) and Jaish al-Fatah terrorists in the province of Latakia. The advance was massively supported by airstrikes of Russian and Syrian warplanes and followed reports that 1,000 cadets completed a 6 month training cycle for the Syrian Marines by Russian military advisers and had been deployed at the frontline in northern Latakia.

By September 12, the loyalists captured a group of villages in northeastern and northwestern parts of the province and finished the day with pushing the terrorist alliance from the strategic Al-Ra’i Mountains. The control of Al-Ra’i Mountains allows the pro-government forces to overlook the countryside of Idlib province and the strategic village of Kabani.

The pro-government forces have also stormed Kabbani and the nearby mountaintops of Jabal Hassan Al-Ra’i, Tal Haddadeh, and Jabal Tufahiyah. As result of this move, the Syrian army and its allies captured Jabal Hassan Al-Ra’i and Jabal Al-Tufahiyah. However, they were unable to push terrorists from Kabani. Further attempts to do this are expected in the nearest future.

Meanwhile, reports appeared that Jabhat Fateh Al-Sham have agreed to surrender the last terrorist-controlled district of Homs, Al-Wa’er, to the Syrian government. The agreement includes transporting 300 militants and their families to the northern countryside of the Homs province.

Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham, one of the largest Syrian militant groups, rejected the proposed ceasefire deal that would end all hostilities between non-terrorist factions inside the country, Al-Arabiya News reported on Sunday. Ahrar Al-Sham’s spokesperson “Abu Yousif Al-Muhajar” stated on Sunday that this ceasefire is “unacceptable” because it allegedly strengthens the pro-government forces. If true, this will likely undermine the shaky stability needed to implement the proposed agreement on the ground.
Articles by: South Front

Disclaimer: The contents of this article are of sole responsibility of the author(s). The Centre for Research on Globalization will not be responsible for any inaccurate or incorrect statement in this article. The Centre of Research on Globalization grants permission to cross-post Global Research articles on community internet sites as long the source and copyright are acknowledged together with a hyperlink to the original Global Research article. For publication of Global Research articles in print or other forms including commercial internet sites, contact: [email protected]

www.globalresearch.ca contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available to our readers under the provisions of "fair use" in an effort to advance a better understanding of political, economic and social issues. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving it for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material for purposes other than "fair use" you must request permission from the copyright owner.

For media inquiries: [email protected]