Syria army, Hezbollah attack militants

The Syrian army and members of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group launched a major ground offensive yesterday aimed at ending the yearslong presence of hundreds of militants in a border area between the two countries.

The offensive was widely expected after negotiations with militants to leave the area failed over the past days. The battle will be fought by Syrian troops and Hezbollah gunmen on the Syrian side of the border while the Lebanese army will likely fight on the Lebanese side.

On Tuesday, Lebanese Prime Minister Sa’ad Hariri said the country’s military is preparing a military operation to secure a lawless section of the border with Syria while Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah hinted in a speech last week that a joint operation was in the works with the Lebanese and Syrian militaries to expel insurgents from the border area.

Government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media (SCMM) reported that military operations began early yesterday from two fronts on the outskirts of the Lebanese town of Arsal and the Syrian village of Fleeta. It said Syrian troops and Hezbollah fighters captured some areas from the militants and killed and wounded a number of extremists.

The rugged mountainous region is a stronghold of Syria’s Al Qaida’s branch, known as Jabhat Fatah Al Sham or Fatah Al Sham Front, as well as the Daesh group and the Levant People’s Brigades. Yesterday’s fighting concentrated in areas controlled by JFS.

Video released by SCMM shows Hezbollah’s artillery pounding militant positions while drone footage showed smoke billowing from areas controlled by the militants.

Lebanon’s National News Agency said the Lebanese army shelled an area on the border to prevent a group of militants from entering the Arsal area.