On Tuesday morning, the Syrian Arab Army’s “Tiger Forces” – in coordination with the 87th Brigade of the 11th Tank Brigade, National Defense Forces (NDF), and Liwaa Al-Assoud Al-Jabal (Lions of the Mountain Brigade) – launched a surprise assault that concentrated on Jaysh Al-Fateh’s positions in the eastern countryside of the Al-Ghaab Plains.
The Syrian Armed Forces’ assault began around 6:45 A.M. (Damascus Time) on Tuesday, when the Tiger Forces and their allies stormed the town of Al-Ziyarah, resulting in its capture after they overwhelmed the Islamist militants from Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham, the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra”, and Jund Al-Aqsa in the surrounding area.
Following their capture of Al-Ziyarah, the Syrian Armed Forces shifted their attention to Khirbat Al-Naqous and Al-Mansoura; these were two towns that the SAA controlled two weeks ago before the conglomerate of Islamist factions “Jaysh Al-Fateh” conducted a large-scale offensive to capture the remaining territory in the Al-Ghaab Plains of the Hama Governorate.
It did not take long for the Syrian Armed Forces to capture Al-Mansoura and Khirbat Al-Naqous from Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham and Jabhat Al-Nusra, as the aforementioned Islamist groups were once again outmatched by the large contingent of soldiers that charged their defensive positions.
According to a military source in Joureen, the current firefights are taking place to the east of Al-Mansoura; however, he was unable to confirm whether or not the Syrian Armed Forces were committed to another offensive in the Al-Ghaab Plains.
