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Syrian government forces have retaken the villages of Umm Suhrej, Alam Sharqiun, Al Harash, Khirbat Habl and Khirbat Haywaniyat from ISIS terrorists in the eastern Hama countryisde. With this advance the army and its allies further decreased the sieze of the ISIS-held pocket in the area that is now rapidly shrinking.
Meanwhile, Russian and Syrian warplanes have carried out at least 8 airstrikes on ISIS positions southwest of the government-held town of Uqayribat, according to local sources.
Yesterday, government troops retook a number of areas in eastern Hama, including Um Sahareej that had been one of the important ISIS defense sites in the southwestern part of the ISIS-held pocket.
They need to halt this operation to race and take as much land as possible in the eastern syria before the kurds take the oli fields and the land there. Isis is already defeated let them be isolated and lower there numbers with no food and water supply
If the SAA lets up the pressure HTS will attack them from the north again. Wipe them all out!
The pocket needs clearing before they can leave the area since this is close to HTS in Idlib region, both are factions of Al Qaeda and will try to link up with each other as are ,many of the FSA.
I find the use of the word retaken confusing. I understand that its used to convey the notion that the Syrian state is reasserting national sovereignty in its own country, but it also implies that these villages were recently taken back by ISIS, only to be taken back again by the SAA. I personally would rather prefer taken or captured. It’s less confusing and we all know its Syrian national territory anyway.
Or ‘ liberated ‘ perhaps ? ‘ Taken, captured or even re-captured both have slightly negative connotations.
The SAA is slowly Shirikening the area and liberating ISISolated areas!