Syrian army gains ground near Damascus

Syrian armed forces were able to advance several blocks in the Jobar district near Damascus, were militants had built one of their strongest bases.
 
“We have just taken control of many new blocks. Our troops also advanced on Zamalka, round about on the Savran Highway, and control the Hirmileh and Jadiah strategic tunnels. The highway is now in our range of fire,” a Syrian army commander said.
 
In recent months, Syrian forces have managed to retake several militant-held areas around the capital.
 
On October 15, the Syrian army located tunnels through which militants infiltrated into a region near Damascus.
 
The militants, who were from radical groups such as the so-called Ajnad al-Sham Islamic Union, aimed at breaching the parameter the Syrian army has enforced in the area.
 
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011. Western powers and their regional allies -- especially Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey -- are reportedly supporting the militants operating in Syria.
 
More than 191,000 people have been killed in over three years of fighting in the war-ravaged country, says the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), calling the figure a probable “underestimate of the real total number of people killed.”