Syria army ‘gains ground’ along Lebanon border

DAMASCUS — Syrian troops backed by Hizbollah  fighters made fresh gains in the strategic Qalamun region near the border with Lebanon Saturday, seizing two villages from rebels, a military source told AFP.

Controlling Qalamun is crucial for President Bashar Assad’s forces as this would stop the flow of weapons and fighters entering Syria from Lebanon.

The Lebanese Shiite group Hizbollah  says deadly car bombs targeting the movement in Lebanon were rigged with explosives in the Qalamun area.

“The army took control this morning of the villages of Ras Al Maarra and Flita, after bombing the last groups of armed terrorists there,” the source said.

Assad’s troops backed by Hizbollah  have been assaulting rebel positions in Qalamun, north of Damascus, since November.

In mid-March they seized the rebels’ last major stronghold in the region, the town of Yabrud, and have since moved on rebel-held villages closer to the border.

The military source called the latest advance “a new step towards closing off the border with Lebanon”.

Though capturing Flita and Ras Al Maarra has not completely sealed the border, “any success... helps seal the border more tightly, at least at the main crossing points that [the rebels use] to transport vehicles”, he added.

The fall of the two villages forced around 700 Syrians to flee across the border to the town of Arsal, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported.