The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) – in coordination with the National Defense Forces (NDF) and the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP) – took control of a number of villages in northeast Latakia on Monday morning after they advanced their positions at the Prophet Younis Mountains and nearby town of Salma.
During the wee hours on Monday morning, the SAA and their allies snuck into the village of Beit ‘Ayyoush near the Idlib border and struck the militants from the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra” with a powerful blow that forced this Islamist group to withdraw from the surrounding hills, resulting in the Syrian Armed Forces taking full control of the area.
In conjunction with the capture of Beit ‘Ayyoush, the SAA and their allies secured Tal Ahmar in the Prophet Younis Mountains after Jabhat Al-Nusra attempted to infiltrate past their positions; this was followed by a counter-attack from the Syrian Armed Forces at the village of Tal Kabbani, where the latter broke-through Islamist militants frontline defenses.
If the Syrian Armed Forces can capture Tal Kabbani from the militants of Jabhat Al-Nusra, they will have access to the western flank of Al-Sirmaniyah in the Al-Ghaab Plains, along with the ability to attack the strategic towns of Salma, Kinisiba, and Baada in the Latakia Governorate.
In addition to their capture of Beit ‘Ayyoush, the Syrian Armed Forces also captured the village of Al-Raylani, killing 16 enemy combatants from the Coastal Brigades and Jund Al-‘Aqsa in the process of taking control of this area.
