Syria army advances in southwest Dara’a

Syria says two Israeli missiles hit near Damascus airport overnight

Syrian government forces widened a major offensive against rebels in the southwest yesterday and Jordan said it would not open its border to tens of thousands of civilians fleeing the attack.

At least 45,000 people have fled the upsurge in fighting in Syria’s southwestern Dara’a province, heading towards the border with Jordan, the UN said.

President Bashar Al Assad is aiming to restore control over a strategically vital part of Syria at the borders with Jordan and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, building on the momentum he is enjoying elsewhere in the seven-year conflict.

Government forces opened a new front against the rebelheld part of Dara’a city, the provincial capital, yesterday, state media reported. A commander in the regional alliance that backs Al Assad told Reuters the aim was to reach the Nassib crossing with Jordan, an economic artery in rebel hands since 2015.

Al Assad is pressing the offensive with Russian support despite warnings from the US which has been seeking to uphold a “de-escalation” deal it brokered with Moscow in the southwest last year. Washington had warned Al Assad of serious repercussions.

But there has been no sign of action to stop him. Washington has told Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebels they should not expect support against the offensive, according to a message sent to rebel commanders seen by Reuters.

Meanwhile, two Israeli missiles hit near Damascus airport overnight, state news agency Sana and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said. An Israeli military spokesman declined to comment on the reports.

Sana said the missile strikes near Damascus international airport were a sign of support by Israel for the rebels in the southwest. The attack in Dara’a has fuelled concern of a new wave of displacement in a conflict that has already uprooted 11 million people. Jens Laerke, spokesman of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said civilians including children had been killed and injured and a hospital had been put out of operation by an air strike.

The number of displaced so far stood at 45,000, he said.

“We expect the number of displaced people could more than double as violence escalates,” Bettina Luescher, spokeswoman for the World Food Programme (WFP), said.