Syria's battle to recapture Qusayr continues

Tue May 28, 2013 12:49:06

At least 13 militants have been killed in latest clashes between the Syrian army and terrorist groups in al-Qusayr.

Heavy fighting continues in the western town of al-Qusayr in the Homs province, one of the main bastions for several terrorist groups fighting against the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Many parts of the town have already been cleared of militants and clashes in the past three days have concentrated around the northern parts of the town as well as the neighboring al-Hamidiyeh district and al-Daba’a Airport.

According to the Al-Alam reporter, the whole area is surrounded by the army, where Syrian soldiers are tightening their grip and neutralizing militants.

In al-Hamdiyeh which was cleared in a major operation on Sunday, militant groups have fled to the suburbs of the residential areas which are surrounded by the Syrian army. 

There are also reports of clashes between the army and a small group of militants in al-Daba’a Airport which is under the siege of the army.

“The army's division and deployment patterns have made it very difficult for the armed groups to move around and they they are increasingly cornered in the central and northern parts of al-Qusayr,” our correspondent Hussein Murtaza says from the scene. 

“Occasional gunfire can be heard in some parts of the town by snipers holed up in buildings and localities." 

Syrian soldiers, backed by volunteer civilian fighters, are pushing forward with their fight against Western-backed terrorist gangs and militant groups throughout the war-torn country. 

With the government struggling with the two-year-old bloody insurgency, the US, Israel and their Western allies are threatening to arm militants if President Assad does not leave.

On Wednesday, a US Senate committee voted in favor of a bill, authorizing the government to provide foreign-sponsored militants in Syria with lethal weapons and military training.

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