Government troops closed in on the armed insurgents on Sunday following heavy clashes and eliminated a large number of the militants.

“We, soldiers of the Syrian Arab Army in Jobar, are determined to continue our national duty in ending armed terrorist groups and cleaning the territories of Syrian Arab Republic from those terrorist mercenaries,” a Syrian officer said.

Meanwhile, Syrian jetfighters and artillery also targeted insurgent positions, destroying their hideouts and underground tunnels.

The Syrian army also released a video showing smoke rising from buildings in Jobar and clashes between army soldiers and foreign-sponsored terrorists.

The army said the operation was launched to flush the insurgents out of the strategic area, which had been used as a launch pad for many terror attacks on the capital Damascus.

Over the past months, the Syrian army has made major gains in its battle against Takfiri groups across the country.

According to estimates by the United Nations, over 190,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the turmoil fueled by the Western-backed insurgents in Syria since March 2011.

Since November 2012, CIA operatives and US Special Operations forces have been secretly providing the terrorists with training on the use of anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons in a secret base in Jordan, according to several reports.

Analysts believe the crisis in Syria will backfire on the West as many terrorists are now returning to the countries they came from, including those in Europe.

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