On Wednesday, Syrian forces took control of three areas north of the al-Shaer gas field, close to a mountain by the same name in the Homs countryside, Syria's official news agency SANA reported.

The Syrian army killed an unspecified number of militants and destroyed a large amount of terrorists’ equipment during the attacks.

On November 6, Syrian army troops backed by pro-government fighters recaptured the strategic Shaer gas field in the central province of Homs.

The Shaer gas field, which feeds gas to the city of Homs and the capital Damascus, fell into the hands of Takfiri ISIL terrorists on October 30, when the terrorists launched an attack that killed dozens of pro-government forces and security guards.

Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. More than 200,000 people have been killed so far in the conflict, according to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein.

Western powers and some of their regional allies -- especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey -- are reportedly supporting the militants operating against the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.