A large crowd of people took part in a rally held in the city of Idlib on Thursday.

The demonstrators carried Syrian flags and chanted slogans in support of the Syrian government and the country’s army that has been battling foreign-backed militants over the past three years.

They also expressed support for the holding of the forthcoming presidential elections in the Arab country. Syrian people will go to the polls on June 3 to elect their next president as Damascus has insisted that it would hold the vote despite the foreign-backed militancy that has plagued the country for more than three years.

In a similar move, pro-government rallies were held in the capital Damascus, Homs, Tartous, and Hasakah. The demonstrators voiced their support for the presidential elections and rejected foreign interference in the country’s internal affairs.

President Assad's popularity has been on the rise following recent military gains.

Meanwhile, Syrian Special Forces broke a long siege on the Aleppo Central Prison by foreign-backed militants, gaining access to the army garrison and resupplying it with food and munitions, Syria's official news agency SANA reported.

The Syrian military forces then deployed troops within 200 meters of the prison compound before storming its immediate surroundings. At least 50 militants were killed in the attack. There are nearly 4,000 inmates in the sprawling prison.

Syria has been gripped by a foreign-hatched war since 2011. According to reports, Western powers and their regional allies - especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.

BA/BA