At dawn, zionist warplanes bombed the Arida border crossing between Syria and Lebanon, leading Lebanon to close most crossings with Syria (except Masnaa) until further notice. Jordan has also closed its border crossings with Syria. This coincided with the further advance of Turkish- and Western-backed Syrian opposition groups, which took control over much of Hama and made their way south towards Homs with busses of “hundreds of displaced people,” used as human shields.

International contacts and meetings are constant and ongoing, with Syrian meeting of ministers discussing the dynamic situation, including readiness for a prolonged war. A tripartite statement by Syrian, Iraqi, and Iranian officials that affirmed the link of the security of the region to the security of Syria and affirmed support for the Syrian government and people. Russia has not asked citizens in Syria to leave, but issued a reminder that they are able to while airports remain open.

Artillery, missiles, and airstrikes from Syrian-Russian warplanes resulted in dozens of opposition militants killed and wounded south of Hama, and many vehicles destroyed in the morning. In Homs, the Syrian Army remains present in its defensive lines and has been reinforced.

Syrian Army units also repelled an attack by Turkestan Islamic Party militants on the Latakia countryside, as well as attacked a convoy between Hama and Homs. The Syrian Army repositioned outside of Hama towards the north, and remains stationed in Jabal Zein Al-Abidin.

Earlier, opposition groups published fabricated videos of explosions in Damascus and false news about withdrawals of Syrian Army units from Homs. Millions of Syrians have been displaced and headed to coastal towns, due to the psychological warfare waged by the opposition. Local source in Nubl and Zahraa near Aleppo spoke of how they were forced to speak about “good treatment” by opposition militants despite them stealing items from their houses and insulting them. In Aleppo, militants entered homes under the pretext of searching for “shabiha” and robbed with impunity.

Today, the opposition groups continued their advance southwards towards Homs, with explicit endorsement by Turkish president Erdogan.  The battles are continuing west of Hama, north of Homs, and northeast of Latakia at this moment.

On the eastern front, the US-backed and Kurdish SDF took control of Deir Ezzor after a joint defensive agreement with the Syrian Army due to the threat from ISIS and Turkish-backed groups, and deployed between Deir Ezzor and Homs. The SDF commander-in-chief stated that they knew what would happen over two months ago. ISIS remains active in the eastern desert, and retook some territory after the recent events.

In the southwest in Daraa and Suweida, a cautious calm broke with militants taking control of checkpoints today following armed clashes, releasing prisoners and seizing vehicles.

RNN