As the mountains of western Syria are encompassed by an abundance of snow, the Syrian War continues despite the volatile weather conditions obstructing most Syrians from traveling or even going outside. The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) decided to utilize the weather to their advantage against a group of Al-Nusra Front (Jabhat Al-Nusra) militants traveling to the village of Assal Al-Ward.
Frigid with low visibility, the weather in the Qalamoun Mountains succored the SAA and National Defense Forces (NDF) at Assal Al-Ward, as they prepared an ambush outside of the village after a Syrian Arab Air Force (SAAF) reconnaissance jet captured images of these militants heading towards this area from the ‘Arsal District in Lebanon.
The SAA and NDF surprised the Al-Nusra Front militants at the western perimeter of Assal Al-Ward, killing over 25 militants and capturing 11 of their combatants. Among the dead fighters for the Al-Nusra Front was their field commander of operations inside the village of Assal Al-Ward – he was identified as “Sheikh Abu Ghareeb.”
