For the third straight day, Hezbollah and the Syrian Arab Army’s 1st Armored Division have continued their counter-offensive against the militants from the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra,” killing a multitude of their fighters before they advanced to a number of points in the Qalamoun Mountains of the Rif Dimashq Governorate.
On Thursday, Hezbollah started the day off with a bang, as they were able to completely secure the town of ‘Assal Al-Ward on the border of Lebanon; this was followed by the capture of three strategic hills that overlook this area and the destruction of two armored vehicles mounted with doshkas.
Directly following their success in ‘Assal Al-Ward, Hezbollah – in coordination with the SAA’s 1st Armored Division – launched another attack on Jabhat Al-Nusra’s positions; this time, the assault targeted the village of Ma’artafah Al-Qurnah, where the resistance forces were able to take full control of after fierce clashes with the Islamist forces.
As Qurnah and ‘Assal Al-Ward were secured, the soldiers from Hezbollah crossed over the Lebanese border and attacked another Islamist rebel contingent at Jaroud Asafah, killing 13 enemy combatants before they completely captured this village at the border of Syria and Lebanon.
Hezbollah did not stop there, the Lebanese resistance force targeted a large group of Jabhat Al-Nusra militants at the Ma’abir Al-Sahreej Hilltop, capturing this rugged area after they killed 9 enemy combatants and seized a vast array of heavy weapons and ammunition from these Islamist fighters.
With much more of the Lebanese-Syrian border under the control of Hezbollah, the latter has successfully cutoff the Jabhat Al-Nusra supply route from the ‘Arsal Barrens t0 the Western Mountains of Al-Zabadani – this area is south of the Qalamoun Mountains in the Rif Dimashq Governorate.
