Deraa is a contested city that lies between Damascus and the Jordan border.
The conquest opens several supply routes to Deraa, which is divided between government and opposition fighters, the Britannia-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Deraa was the scene of some of the first protests against
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Horror of Homs...
in 2011 and holds symbolic value in the narrative of the uprising that has since collapsed into a vicious civil war.
Syria's official news agency says the offensive on Atman, north of Deraa, scattered rebel forces - which it labels terrorists.
Troops advanced under the cover of heavy artillery bombardment and air power, the Observatory reports.
Aleppo
Meanwhile,
...back at the mall, Clarissa spent the day shopping for new underwear. Tonight was going to be a special occasion...
the commander of a U.S.-supported Syrian rebel group said on Friday the northern countryside of Aleppo province was completely encircled by Syrian government forces and its allies, and heavy Russian bombardment continued.
Syrian government troops and their allies broke through rebel defences to reach two Shiite villages in northern Aleppo province on Wednesday, choking opposition supply lines from
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire....
to Aleppo city.
The assault in northern Aleppo province, backed by hundreds of Russian air strikes there, has also prompted tens of thousands of people to flee towards the Turkish border and helped derail peace talks in Geneva.
Hassan Haj Ali, the head of a prominent Free Syrian Army
... the more palatable version of the Syrian insurgency, heavily influenced by the Moslem Brüderbund...
group called Liwa Suqour al-Jabal that has received U.S. military training in Qatar
...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates...
and Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face...
, said the aerial bombardment continued.
"The Russian cover continues night and day, there were more than 250 air strikes on this area in one day," he told Rooters.
"The regime is now trying to expand the area it has taken control of," he said. "Now the northern countryside (of Aleppo province) is totally encircled, and the humanitarian situation is very difficult."
Hezbollah's Al Manar television said government forces and allied fighters had taken over the town of Ratyan, which lies close to areas they captured on Wednesday.
The Observatory confirmed the "symbolic" capture of Ratyan, but Haj Ali said it had not yet fallen.
"There are very heavy battles in Ratyan, and an attempt by the regime to storm it. But until now they haven't been able to enter," he said.
Haj Ali reiterated calls for countries backing Syrian rebels to send more military aid, including anti-aircraft missiles, but said he held out little hope for the latter.
"We demand daily more support, but the issue of anti-aircraft (weapons) has become a dream ... the dream that will not come true," he said.
U.S.-made TOW missiles, or guided anti-tank missiles, are the most potent weapon in the rebel arsenal and have been supplied to vetted rebel groups as part of a program of military support overseen by the Central Intelligence Agency.
But while they have helped rebels to slow advances on the ground, they are of little use against fighter bombers.