Syrian government forces have managed to wrest full control over a village in the country’s northwestern province of Idlib.
Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that units of Syrian units could seize back al-Musheirifa village on Sunday afternoon following heavy exchanges of gunfire with members of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham Takfiri terrorist group, formerly known as al-Nusra Front.
The report added that the clashes also led to the elimination of a number of terrorists, and destruction of weapons in their possession. The remaining Takfiris fled to areas in the southern countryside of Idlib.
On November 14, Syrian army soldiers seized control of the villages of al-Luweibdeh Gharbiya and Tal Khazna in the southern countryside of Idlib after the last remnants of foreign-backed terrorists were purged from the area.
On August 5, the Syrian army declared in a statement the start of an offensive against foreign-sponsored militants in Idlib after those positioned in the de-escalation zone failed to honor a ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey and continued to target civilian neighborhoods.
“Even though the Syrian Arab Army declared a ceasefire in the de-escalation zone of Idlib on August 1, armed terrorist groups, backed by Turkey, refused to abide by the ceasefire and launched many attacks on civilians in surrounding areas,” SANA cited a statement released by the General Command of the Army and Armed Forces.
“The Turkish regime’s persistence in allowing its terrorist pawns in Idlib to carry out attacks proves that Ankara is maintaining its destructive approach and is ignoring its commitments as per the Sochi agreement. This has emboldened terrorists to fortify their positions and led to the spread of the threat of terrorism across the Syrian territory,” the statement added, referring to the Russian city where the truce deal was agreed upon.
Under the Sochi agreement, all militants in the demilitarized zone that surrounds Idlib and also parts of the provinces of Aleppo and Hama were supposed to pull out heavy arms by October 17 last year, and Takfiri groups had to withdraw two days earlier.
The National Front for the Liberation of Syria is the main Turkish-backed militant alliance in Idlib region, but the Takfiri Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) terrorist group, which is a coalition of different factions of terror outfits largely composed of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, holds a large part of the province and the zone.
The HTS, which is said to be in control of some 60 percent of Idlib, has yet to announce its stance on the buffer zone deal.
