On Thursday, the Syrian Armed Forces countered the militants from the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra” in the southern part of the Jisr Al-Shughour District, taking control of two villages near the Syrian Government’s main supply route in the western countryside of the Idlib Governorate.
The Syrian Arab Army’s 87th Brigade of the 11th Tank Division – in cooperation with the National Defense Forces (NDF) – attacked the militants of Jabhat Al-Nusra and Jaysh Al-Muhajireen at Jub Al-Ahmar and Tal Wassit, where they were able to capture these villages after fierce clashes with the Islamist militants in this rural area.
According to a military source in the Idlib Governorate, the SAA’s 87th Brigade and the NDF killed over two dozen enemy combatants during their attack at Jub Al-Ahmar and Tal Wassit; this is also the first time the Syrian Armed Forces have entered these villages in three days.
Jabhat Al-Nusra and their allies from Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham and Ajnad Al-Sham attempted to infiltrate past the SAA’s frontline defenses at the southern flank of the Jisr Al-Shughour National Hospital; however, the assault on the heavily fortified National Hospital was unsuccessful for the sixth day in a row.
While charging the Jisr Al-Shughour National Hospital, the Islamist militants sustained heavy casualties once again, as the soldiers from the 87th Brigade reported over 30 enemy combatants killed during the attack.
North of Frikka, the SAA’s “Tiger Forces” secured the Frikka-Ariha Road after militants from Jabhat Al-Nusra and Jaysh Al-Mujahireen attempted to disrupt this country roadway used by the Syrian Armed Forces to resupply their entrenched soldiers at the city of Ariha in the southern Idlib Governorate.
As the militants retreated from the Frikka front to nearby Malqah and Al-Marj, the Syrian Arab Air Force (SAAF) targeted these combatants with powerful airstrikes, leaving many of them dead and wounded.
