Syrian
army recaptures major highway and northern town
by Joseph
Earnest December 9, 2013
Newscast
Media DAMASCUS—The Syrian army has
made more gains in its fight against foreign-backed militants operating
inside the country establishing full control over the town of al-Nabek.
Units of the armed forces on Monday took the town after a series of
successful operations, an unnamed military source told official SANA
news agency.
The town was captured after government forces seized a key highway
near it, which passes through the strategic region of Qalamoun.
The highway is extremely valuable to both sides of the battle
because it serves as an important link between Damascus and the
country's north.
The latest gain paves the way for the start of overland shipment of
Syria’s chemical weapons to a Mediterranean port for destruction
abroad.
The crisis in Syria has created an obstacle for the implementation of
an agreement between Damascus and the Organization for the Prohibition
of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to remove chemical weapons from Syria.
On September 14, Russia and the United States agreed on a deal under
which Syria would have its chemical weapons eliminated and the US would
in return not carry out planned strikes on the Arab country.
The war rhetoric against Syria intensified after foreign-backed
opposition forces accused the government of President Bashar al-Assad of
launching a chemical attack on militant strongholds in the suburbs of
the capital Damascus on August 21.
Damascus has vehemently denied the accusation, saying the attack was
carried out by the militants themselves as a false-flag operation.
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