News / Syria

Syrian army troops, allies liberate central town in Homs from Daesh

Saturday, 21 October 2017 1:57 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 21 October 2017 2:03 PM ]

Syrian forces flash the V-sign from the side of a road on the outskirts of Dayr al-Zawr on September 24, 2017, as government forces continue to press forward in the offensive against Daesh Takfiri terrorists across the province. (Photo by AFP)

Syrian government forces, supported by fighters from allied popular defense groups, have managed to wrest complete control over a town in the central province of Homs as they continue to score more territorial gains against the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group across the war-ravaged Arab country.

Syria’s official news agency, SANA, reported that Syrian troops and their allies had regained control of al-Qaraytan, located some 100 kilometers from the ancient city of Palmyra and nearly 300 kilometers from Dayr al-Zawr, after eliminating the Daesh terrorists that had infiltrated it.

Earlier this month, the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that Daesh terrorists had overrun the town.

The Britain-based monitoring group said on Saturday that some terrorists had surrendered and others had withdrawn from the town after heavy fighting.

The group said Daesh Takfiris were now in control of a patch of desert in the east of Homs province.

The report comes as Syrian government forces are carrying out fresh operations against Daesh Takfiri terrorists in the eastern province of Dayr al-Zawr, inflicting substantial losses on them.

Syrian government forces man a checkpoint in the eastern Syrian city of Dayr al-Zawr on September 21, 2017 as Syrian government forces continue to press forward in the offensive against Daesh Takfiri terrorists across the province. (Photo by AFP)

Daesh overran large parts of Dayr al-Zawr province, including its many oil fields, in mid-2014 as it seized swathes of land in Syria and neighboring Iraq.

By early 2015, the Takfiri terrorists were in control of some parts of the city of Dayr al-Zawr and besieged the remaining parts, which were under government control. It is estimated that 100,000 people remain in the government-held parts of the city.

Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. The Syrian government says the Israeli regime and its Western and regional allies are aiding Takfiri terrorist groups, who are wreaking havoc in the country.

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