Fighting in Syria approaches Israeli border
Group says joint offensive of regime forces and Hezbollah fighters against rebels is nearing Israel’s Golan Heights
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BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Syrian regime forces have advanced to the edge of the Israeli Golan Heights as part of a joint offensive against rebels in southern Syria, a monitoring group said Wednesday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said forces loyal to President Bashar Assad joined Hezbollah fighters at the intersection of Daraa, Quneitra and Damascus provinces, close to the Israeli’s border with Syria.
On January 18, six Hezbollah fighters and an Iranian general were killed in an Israeli strike in Quneitra.
The Lebanese militant group and the Syrian army launched an offensive on Sunday to reclaim swaths of territory held by the rebels, who include jihadists, the Observatory said.
They took the village of Deir al-Adass, which had been controlled by rebels since January 2014, in clashes Tuesday that killed 20 rebels, it added.
“It’s Hezbollah that is leading the attack on the southern front,” said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman.
Hezbollah’s Al-Manar television channel broadcast live images Wednesday from Deir al-Adass with the sound of fighting clearly audible in the background.
The channel said the group’s advances in the area were the most significant since the rebels entered it.
Syria’s state SANA news agency reported “advances as part of a vast operation by the army and armed groups.”
A Syrian security source said the joint assault close to the armistice line on the Golan Heights was aimed at putting a stop to rebel attacks on the Damascus region.
The Times of Israel Community.