News / Syria

Syrian correspondent slain while covering army advances in militant-held Eastern Ghouta

Thursday, 08 March 2018 10:24 PM [ Last Update: Thursday, 08 March 2018 10:26 PM ]

Hasan Ali Badran, the slain field correspondent for the press office of the Syrian army (Photo by SANA)

A field correspondent for the press office of the Syrian army has lost his life while covering territorial gains being made by government forces and allied fighters from popular defense groups in battles against foreign-sponsored Takfiri terrorists in the militant-held Eastern Ghouta enclave.

Syria’s official news agency, SANA, reported that Hasan Ali Badran died on Thursday as Syrian troopers and their allies were engaged in fierce clashes against members of the Jabhat Fateh al-Sham Takfiri terrorist group, formerly known as al-Nusra Front, in the besieged area.

The development came a day after a cameraman for Iran’s Arabic-language al-Alam television news network was killed when covering latest developments in the southern part of Syria’s embattled northwestern province of Idlib.

Yazan Kahil, the slain cameraman of Iran’s Arabic-language al-Alam television news network

Yazan Kahil was filming the advances of pro-government Syrian forces while he stepped on an improvised explosive device left behind by Takfiri terrorists, and lost his life.

UN: Fighting in Eastern Ghouta drives out 50,000 civilians

Meanwhile, the spokeswoman for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Syria says a combined population of 50,000 people has been displaced in the wake of the recent wave of deadly violence in Eastern Ghouta.

Linda Tom noted that the displaced civilians come from the towns of Mesraba, Hammouriyeh and Mudeira.

Syria’s Ghouta 'hell on earth' for children: UNICEF chief

Additionally, the head of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has described the militant-held Eastern Ghouta enclave as a “hell on earth” for children, stressing that aid is urgently needed for the people trapped there.

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Militants open fire on families leaving Syria's Ghouta: Russian commander

“We need in the humanitarian community a chance to deliver assistance. Convoys need to come in with food and supplies, and the last convoy was only half unloaded,” Henrietta Fore told Reuters in an interview.

A picture taken on March 8, 2018 shows a Syrian child walking down a street past rubble from destroyed buildings, in the militant-held town of Douma in the Eastern Ghouta enclave on the outskirts of Damascus. (Photo by AFP)

A UN aid convoy was allowed into Eastern Ghouta on Monday, but it had to depart before being completely offloaded because of the fighting.

Eastern Ghouta, a besieged area on the outskirts of Damascus with a population of some 400,000 people, has witnessed deadly violence over the past few weeks, with Takfiri terrorists launching mortar attacks on the Syrian capital in the face of an imminent humiliating defeat.

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 that are wreaking havoc in the country.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk