Syrian army retakes key town in Hama from rebels

By Agencies Published: May 27, 2019 01:37 PM

Syrian soldiers are seen in the town of Kafr Nabudah in the northwestern countryside of Hama province in central Syria, on May 26, 2019. The Syrian Army on Sunday recaptured the town of Kafr Nabudah following battles with the al-Qaida-linked groups, state news agency SANA reported. (Xinhua)

A Syrian military vehicle is seen in the town of Kafr Nabudah in the northwestern countryside of Hama province in central Syria, on May 26, 2019. The Syrian Army on Sunday recaptured the town of Kafr Nabudah following battles with the al-Qaida-linked groups, state news agency SANA reported. (Xinhua)

Photo taken on May 26, 2019 shows a general view of the town of Kafr Nabudah in the northwestern countryside of Hama province in central Syria. The Syrian Army on Sunday recaptured the town of Kafr Nabudah following battles with the al-Qaida-linked groups, state news agency SANA reported. (Xinhua)

The Syrian Army on Sunday recaptured the town of Kafr Nabudah in the northwestern countryside of Hama province in central Syria following battles with the al-Qaida-linked groups, state news agency SANA reported.

The army captured the town after a "precise" military operation against the rebels of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the umbrella group of the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, according to the report.

Large numbers of the rebels, as well as their booby-trapped vehicles and weapons, were destroyed by the army.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said that the army captured Kafr Nabudah after targeting it with over 675 airstrikes and ground shelling.

The Britain-based watchdog group said the battles are taking place on the eastern and northern outskirts of the town. It added that huge losses were reported on both sides during the last hours of fighting.

It's worth noting that the Syrian Army captured the town on May 8 and lost it to the al-Qaida-linked groups on May 22 amid ongoing showdown in areas in the countryside of Hama, the nearby countryside areas of Idlib and Latakia provinces.

Kafr Nabudah has strategic importance as it links several towns in northern Hama countryside with rebel-held areas in the southern countryside of Idlib.

Areas in the countryside of Hama, Idlib and the western countryside of Aleppo are included in the de-escalation zones deal which was reached between Russia and Turkey in September 2018.

The deal failed to materialize as the HTS expanded in Idlib and started attacks on Syrian military positions instead of withdrawing from the designated zone which combines Idlib with Hama and Aleppo countryside as well as mountain areas in the eastern countryside of Latakia province.