Syrian army troops continue advancing in southern Idlib, liberate six more villages

Syrian government forces, backed by allied fighters from popular defense groups, have retaken control of a number of villages in the southern countryside of the northwestern province of Idlib following clashes with foreign-backed Takfiri militants.

Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that Syrian army troops and their allies – supported by artillery and missile units – regained full control of six villages, namely al-Huwash, al-Amiqa, Tanjarah, al-Ankawi, Shirmaghar and al-Arima, on Thursday after they directly targeted militant strongholds and fortification lines there.

The Syrian military offensives incurred heavy losses on the terrorists in terms of military hardware and personnel, forcing scores of them to flee to neighboring areas for their lives.

Syrian government forces have launched an operation to capture those extremists.

Later in the day, Syrian soldiers seized the strategic Shahshabou mountain, and linked up with their counterparts advancing in Kafar Awid region of Hama province.

Syrian soldiers, Turkish-backed militants battle for control of strategic highway

Separately, Syrian soldiers and Turkish-backed militants were engaged in intense clashes over the control of the key M4 highway in Syria's northeastern province of al-Hasakah.

The highway connects the flashpoint town of Saraqeb with government-held western coastal city of Latakia.

SANA reported that the fierce skirmishes between the two sides resulted in the closure of the M5 highway that connects Aleppo province in the north with the capital Damascus in the south.

The Syrian army secured the road earlier this month and opened it for travel and trade purposes for the first time in eight years.

Syrian government troops captured Saraqeb from Turkish-backed militants on Feb. 6, which enabled the army to secure the M5.

Israeli drone strike kills civilian near Syria’s Golan Heights

Moreover, a civilian lost his life when an unmanned aerial vehicle belonging to the Israeli military launched an airstrike in Syria’s southwestern province of Quneitra near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

SANA reported that the victim was traveling in his car along a road in Hader village on Thursday, when the Israeli drone fired a missile, killing him on the spot.

Syria finds Turkish-made weapons in ex-militant redoubt 

Additionally, Syrian government forces carried out a string of clean-up operations in the southern sector of the country, discovering a substantial amount of munitions and medical supplies from former strongholds of foreign-backed Takfiri terrorists.

SANA reported that the weapons included 14.5mm and 23mm machine guns, PK general-purpose machine guns, automatic rifles, a drone, tank shells, Fozlika artillery shells, 60mm, 80mm and 120mm mortar shells in addition to anti-armor rockets. Some of the munitions had been manufactured in Turkey.

Hundreds of kilograms of hashish were found at the sites as well.

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